Biography of Bobbie Rosenfeld

792 Words2 Pages

Bobbie Rosenfeld
Canada’s most famous female all-around athlete in the 1920s was Fanny “Bobbie” Rosenfeld. Baseball, basketball, fastball, golf, hockey,lacrosse, softball, speed skating, tennis, and track and field were some of the sports that Bobbie played and she mastered all of them (“Bobbie Rosenfeld: One of the Greatest All-Around Athletes”). The first event that put Rosenfeld in the spotlight was the 100-metre sprint that she ran, for fun, in a small track and field meet in 1923. During the meet she came first in the race, beating Rosa Grosse, the leading Canadian champion. She beat her again at another meet and made the world record for that event. In the same year she was Toronto’s tennis champion (Rosenberg). Bobbie Rosenfeld continued her career by participating in a provincial track and field competition in 1925. She placed first in discus, shot put, 220-metre dash, low hurdles and long jump. In the 100-metre dash and javelin she came second (Library and Archives Canada). By that time she was the Canadian record holder for the 440-metre relay, standing board jump, discus, javelin and shot put. Rosenfeld’s greatest achievements were in, the first Olympics that allowed women to participate in track and field events, Amsterdam in 1928. She was a member of the Matchless Six, the Canadian women’s track and field team. This team did an outstanding job in the 400-metre relay; as a result they placed first and broke the previous record, becoming national heroes. In addition to the relay Bobbie won the silver medal in the 100-metre dash. The most memorable was the 800-metre race, one that Bobbie had not trained for. During the race she could have finished in third place, however she let her teammate finish before her and as a re...

... middle of paper ...

...is given to a female athlete every year since 1978. Rosenfeld was not only acknowledged in Canada but also in Israel where she was introduced into the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1981. Six years later she was titled one of the most important sports figures in Canadian history by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada. The Bobbie Rosenfeld Park is located in downtown Toronto, between the CN Tower and the Sky Dome. The park was built in 1991 (Rosenberg). In 1996 a stamp from Canada Post honoured the greatest all-round athlete of Canada. Lastly Rosenfeld was named a Woman of Valour for 2000 by the Jewish Women’s Archive in the United States (Library and Archives Canada). The all-round athlete, coach, sports administrator, official and journalist (Rosenberg) has significantly contributed to Canada and as a result the world has commemorated her.

More about Biography of Bobbie Rosenfeld

Open Document