Book Review for

Triumph -- The Untold Story of Jesse Owens and Hitler's Olympics

by Jeremy Schapp

In the summer of 1970, when I was 17 and working for the Andy Frain ushers,
I seated Jesse Owens and his wife at a Chicago White Sox game. Even 34 years
after his triumph at the 1936 Olympics in Germany, people were coming up to
him for autographs. This book is a well-written account of the story of how Jesse,
the son of sharecroppers from Alabama, won 4 gold medals at the 1936 Olympics,
crushing Hitler's myth of Aryan supremacy. He replaced Joe Louis as the world's
most popular athlete, was welcomed by the German people, and displayed great
politeness and focus as a black man living in an age of discrimination. Highlights
include his relationship with his coaches. First, Charles Riley, who first noticed
Jesse's "oddly symmetrical and powerful legs", frequently welcomed Jesse into his
home for meals, bought him track shoes with his own money, and emphasized the
importance of form in running. Then Ohio State's coach, Larry Synder, who was always
encouraging, who treated Jesse like a son, and was there at the 1936 Olympics.
Jesse maintained his fitness for years, occasionally giving demonstrations of his
blazing speed. Unfortunately, Jesse died in 1980 at the age of 66 from
lung cancer and a lifetime of smoking. A very inspiring story.


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