Editing Jesse Owens (section)

==Legacy==
[[File:Jesse Owens figure at Madame Tussauds London (30870323410).jpg|thumb|upright|Waxwork of Owens at [[Madame Tussauds]], London]]
Owens is widely considered one of the greatest [[athletes]] in the history of [[track and field]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Spence |first=Blaine |title=Jesse Owens: One of the Greatest Athletes of All Time |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/233873-jessie-owens-one-of-the-greatest-athletes-of-all-time |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=bleacherreport.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Bansal |first=Puneet |title=Jesse Owens, one of the greatest athletes of the last century |url=https://observer.case.edu/jesse-owens-one-of-the-greatest-athletes-of-the-last-century/ |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=The Observer}}</ref> Over the course of his career, he earned nine [[Big Ten Conference|Big Ten]] titles{{efn|name=c}}, eight [[NCAA Division I Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championships|NCAA titles]], and six [[USA Track & Field Championships|USA Track & Field titles]].<ref name=":12" /><ref name=":8" /> His international legacy was cemented at the [[1936 Summer Olympics|Olympics]], where he won gold in all four events he entered—each in [[Olympic record]] time–delivering a powerful rebuttal to [[Adolf Hitler]]’s [[ideology]] of [[Aryan race|Aryan]] supremacy and dealt a symbolic blow to the [[Nazi Germany|Nazi regime’s]] [[Propaganda in Nazi Germany|racist propaganda]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Museum |first=Abraham Lincoln Presidential |title=Exposing the Hypocrisy of the 1936 Berlin Olympics |url=https://presidentlincoln.illinois.gov/education/educator-resources/teaching-guides/exposing-the-hypocrisy-of-the-1936-berlin-olympics/ |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC World Service - Sportsworld - 10 seconds that defied Adolf Hitler |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5gbnqrtPRqxzqxWJGxpPg6v/10-seconds-that-defied-adolf-hitler |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=BBC |language=en-GB}}</ref> Several of his world records endured for decades, including his long jump record, which lasted 25 years, and his 100-meter dash record, which stood for 20.<ref>{{Cite web |title=After 51 years, Owens' longevity record finally falls {{!}} NEWS {{!}} World Athletics |url=https://worldathletics.org/news/news/after-51-years-owens-longevity-record-finally |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250123093110/https://worldathletics.org/news/news/after-51-years-owens-longevity-record-finally |archive-date=2025-01-23 |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=worldathletics.org |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Shryack |first=Lincoln |date=2016-02-18 |title=Jesse Owens And The 100m World Record Timeline |url=https://www.flotrack.org/articles/5049502-jesse-owens-and-the-100m-world-record-timeline |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=FloTrack |language=en}}</ref> 

Following his athletic career, Owens experienced difficulties securing financial stability, a circumstance attributed in part to limited opportunities available to [[African American]] athletes during that period.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Riddell |first=Ben Morse, Don |date=2024-07-04 |title=Jesse Owens’ achievements at 1936 Olympics were ‘thumb in the eye’ to Adolf Hitler, says US athlete’s grandson |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/04/sport/jesse-owens-grandson-1936-olympics-berlin-spt-intl |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref> Although he was celebrated for his Olympic accomplishments, he was not invited to the [[White House]] or formally recognized by the [[Federal government of the United States|U.S. government]] at the time.<ref>{{Cite web |title=1936 Berlin Olympics :: Consider The Source Online |url=https://considerthesourceny.org/teaching-holocaust-and-genocide/holocaust-resources-time-period/indoctrination-and-discrimination/supplemental-readings/1936-olympics |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=considerthesourceny.org}}</ref> Later in life, his contributions to sport and society were acknowledged through various honors, including the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] in [[List of Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients#Awarded by Gerald Ford|1976]] and the [[Congressional Gold Medal]] posthumously in [[List of Congressional Gold Medal recipients#Recipients of Congressional Gold Medals|1990]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-03-25 |title=Owens' Medal of Freedom auctioned for $128K |url=https://www.espn.com/olympics/trackandfield/story/_/id/22908298/jesse-owens-presidential-medal-freedom-sells-128617-auction |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=ESPN.com |language=en}}</ref>

<blockquote>
"Giants like Jesse Owens show us why politics will never defeat the Olympic spirit. His character, his achievements have continued to inspire Americans as they did the whole world in 1936."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-01-22 |title=Decency, justice and the Michigan-OSU rivalry: The story of Jesse Owens and Gerald Ford |url=https://thelivingstonpost.com/decency-justice-and-the-michigan-osu-rivalry-the-story-of-jesse-owens-and-gerald-ford/ |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=thelivingpost.com |language=en}}</ref> — [[Gerald Ford]]
</blockquote>

Owens has been honored with schools, streets, and athletic facilities named after him—including [[Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium]]—and his life has inspired documentaries, books, and the biopic [[Race (2016 film)|''Race'']].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium {{!}} Columbus, OH 43210 |url=https://www.columbussports.org/listing/jesse-owens-memorial-stadium/426081/ |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=www.columbussports.org |language=en-us}}</ref><ref name=":13" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Race (2016) {{!}} Rotten Tomatoes |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/race_2016 |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=www.rottentomatoes.com |language=en}}</ref> Notably, the documentary [[Olympic Pride, American Prejudice|''Olympic Pride, American Prejudice'']] also highlights his story as part of a broader examination of the 18 Black American athletes who competed in the 1936 Berlin Olympics.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Olympic Pride, American Prejudice movie review (2016) {{!}} Roger Ebert |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/olympic-pride-american-prejudice-2016 |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=www.rogerebert.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.pbs.org/show/olympic-pride-american-prejudice/ |title=Olympic Pride, American Prejudice |language=en |access-date=2025-05-13 |via=www.pbs.org}}</ref> He is also a member of several [[List of halls and walks of fame|halls of fame]], including the [[United States Olympic & Paralympic Hall of Fame|U.S. Olympic]] and [[National Track and Field Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jones |first=Maddie |date=2019-07-21 |title=Jesse Owens {{!}} U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Hall of Fame |url=https://usopm.org/jesse-owens/ |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=United States Olympic & Paralympic Museum |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-01-25 |title=Jesse Owens’ four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games in Nazi Berlin mean more than perhaps any others in history. |url=https://www.runnersworld.com/runners-stories/a42654594/jesse-owen1/ |access-date=2025-05-13 |website=Runner's World |language=en-US}}</ref>

The [[dormitory]] that Owens occupied during the Berlin Olympics has been fully restored into a living museum, with pictures of his accomplishments at the games, and a letter (intercepted by the [[Gestapo]]) from a fan urging him not to shake hands with Hitler.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hitler%E2%80%99s_Olympic_Village_Faces_Conservation_Battle.theora.ogv|title=Hitler's Olympic Village Faces Conservation Battle [video] |work=Voice of America|date=August 26, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Henry |last=Ridgwell |date= August 23, 2012 |title=Hitler's Olympic Village Faces Conservation Battle |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/hitler-olympic-village-faces-conservation-battle/1494715.html |work=VOA News |publisher=Voice of America |access-date=April 14, 2023 |quote=A letter from a fan urges Owens to refuse to accept a medal from 'bloodstained hands'. He never saw it; it was intercepted by the Gestapo, the German secret police.}}</ref>