NEW YORK – American Evelyn Ashford carried the mantle as the world’s best female sprinter, starting in her early 20s, just after notching a place in the women’s 100m final, in 1976, at the Montreal Olympics.
Evelyn Ashford-Washington was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, on 15 April 1957. Louisiana is hardly a hotbed for track superstars but Ashford is nothing if not an anomaly. She was a high school sprinter before she attended college at the University of Los Angeles, in California, where she further honed her talent. Not much was know about Ashford when she made the US sprint team to Montreal but she distinguished herself well, finishing fifth in her pet event, in a PB of 11.24secs.
Ashford was inspired by her sprint idol, Wilma Rudolph, a former American sprint great. She overshadowed Rudolph and all who preceded her, by going on to become the dominant force in women’s sprints. Late in her young career, she added the 200m to her repertoire.
Ashford won the World Cup titles in both sprints in 1979, topping the fearsome East Germans (before they, along with West Germany, became Germany) thus making her the odds-on-favorite for the Olympic sprint double title. Her greatness inspired a plethora of women from the western hemisphere including compatriots Chandra Cheeseborough (with an 11.23secs fourth place finish in Montreal), Valerie Brisco-Hooks, who become prominent, and Jamaica’s queen emeritus of sprinting, Merlene Ottey.
Tumultuous Relationship with Coach
The 1984 Olympic Games became a polar event with the US boycotting because of USSR’s invasion of Afghanistan. The Games were held in Moscow, Russia and lost many of the world’s great stars. They say the Games must go on, and although they did, many enthusiasts felt that politics had no place in the world of sport. Whatever the thinking, Ashford had to wait another four years for redemption. In the meantime, all she did was set a 100m world record in 1983, with a scintillating display of grit and determination, resulting in 10.76secs. To put that in perspective, current sprint hot-shot Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce of Jamaica, was not yet born, yet Ashford’s time would have been a close second to her at the 2013 World Championships.
From all accounts, Ashford had a tumultuous relationship with her long-time coach, Pat Connolly. He was a tough coach, who felt that the athlete needed to experience pains in training if she were to experience greater success. Ashford was notoriously skeptical of the rigors of practice because of her low tolerance for pain. Therefore, it was no surprise when they parted company shortly after the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. This was, however, just after the decisive Ashford 100m and sprint relay victories. She could not contest the 200m, because she suffered an injury during the US Trials. That 200m was won by her perennial rival, Valerie Brisco-Hooks, who went on to capture the 400m in 48.83secs, after a 21.81secs 200m win. Ashford’s 200m best time stands at 21.83secs.
Evelyn Ashford grew from strength to strength. Late in 1984 she set a World Record and lifetime best of 10.76secs in Zurich, Switzerland. That time, almost 30 years later, is good enough to ensure Ashford remains one of the top ten fastest women of all time. She was ranked number one in the world for the third year, as in 1979 and 1981, on the strength of that performance.
Ashford went on to finish second to Florence Griffith-Joyner in the 100m at the 1988 Seoul, South Korea Olympics. Ashford made not-so veiled comments about Griffith-Joyner then with: “She is phenomenal; only a man can beat her.” She also said that she spent years working hard to achieve her success, and that Griffith-Joyner came up overnight to erase her achievements. Some observers maintained that she was alluding to the drug allegations that swirled around Griffith-Joyner during her career and even after her death.
30+ Sub-11secs Times
In 1992, at the age of 35, Ashford made a fourth Olympic 100m final. She helped the US win the sprint relay final. For the record, she won five Olympic medals including four gold medals and one silver medal. The erstwhile Queen of the Sprints blessed the Pan American Games by winning the 1979 sprint double in remotely easy fashion. She did it all.
Evelyn Ashford was twice named Female Athlete of the Year, 1981 and 1984. She ran the 100m in under 11.00secs more than 30 times. She once said: “I think maybe I’m a pioneer. When I started, the Eastern European women had a stranglehold on sprinting; I wanted to prove that Evelyn Ashford could run fast and win a gold medal.” She was inducted into the USA Track and Field Hall of Fame and the US Olympic Hall of Fame in 1997 and 2005, respectively.
The trailblazing Asford is not generally part of any conversation regarding “Greatest Female Sprinter Ever,” often taking a backseat to other track royalty: Merlene Ottey, Florence Griffith-Joyner, Marita Koch, and the worthy Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce. Whatever Asford’s position on that is, her greatness is undeniable, and her magical runs helped cement the tremendous contribution women athletes bring to the proverbial table.