[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 13594]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              IN HONOR OF MR. JESSE OWENS' 100TH BIRTHDAY

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                        HON. ROBERT B. ADERHOLT

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 12, 2013

  Mr. ADERHOLT. Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege to honor Mr. Jesse 
Owens on the 100th anniversary of his birthday. James Cleveland Owens 
was born the son of a sharecropper on a farm in Oakville, Alabama on 
September 12, 1913. It's been said the family sold its only valuable 
possession, their mule, in order to travel to Cleveland, Ohio in search 
of a better life. A teacher at his new school, misunderstanding when 
James Cleveland told her his name was J.C., called him Jesse, and the 
name stuck.
  When Jesse entered junior high school, the track team coach noticed 
his ability to run and jump and recruited him for the team. By the time 
Jesse entered high school, he was a track star. He set many school 
records and continued to do so after entering college at Ohio State 
University.
  In 1935, Jesse entered the Big Ten Championship held at Ann Arbor, 
Michigan where he tied one world record and set three new ones. His 
long jump record of 26 feet 8.25 inches went unbroken for 25 years.
  In 1936, he competed in the Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, where 
he won four gold medals, the most ever won by an individual up until 
that time. In doing so, Jesse Owens proved that Adolph Hitler's Nazi 
views of Aryan superiority were inaccurate and that anyone, regardless 
of race, religion or national origin can achieve greatness.
  Owens was a motivational speaker for much of his post-Olympics life 
and devoted much of his time to youth sports programs for 
underprivileged children. He earned many awards, among them the Medal 
of Freedom and the Presidential Living Legends Award.
  Owens died of lung cancer in 1980, with his wife, Ruth, and his three 
daughters by his side. He hasn't been forgotten, though. Thousands of 
admirers visit Jesse Owens Park and Museum in Oakville, AL each year, 
many of them from Germany and other foreign countries.
  On a monument dedicated to his memory in 1983 and now on display at 
Jesse Owens Memorial Park are the words, ``He inspired a world enslaved 
in tyranny and brought hope to his fellow man . . . from the cotton 
fields of Oakville to the acclaim of the entire world, he made us all 
proud to be called Lawrence Countians.''
  I am thankful for the life and legacy of Jesse Owens, because of his 
tremendous athletic achievements as well as the inspiration he provided 
to millions here and around the world.

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