Harriet_Bland

Harriet Bland

Harriet Bland

American sprinter

Harriet Claiborne Bland (February 13, 1915 – November 6, 1991), later Harriet Bland Green, was an American sprinter from St. Louis, Missouri.

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Early life

Bland was born in St. Louis, the daughter of Isabelle Heard Bland. She attended Mary Institute, a private day school.[3]

Sports career

Bland nearly qualified for the 1932 Summer Olympics team in 1932,[3] and protested the decision to exclude her. She qualified for the 1936 team, but was told that there was no money to send her to Berlin.[4] After a fundraising campaign by the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, to cover her travel expenses,[5][6] and losing her track shoes and handbag in New York before sailing for Berlin,[7] she competed at the 1936 Summer Olympics, under track coach Dee Boeckmann, in the individual 100m and 4 × 100 m relay. She won a gold medal in the relay, with Betty Robinson, Annette Rogers, and Helen Stephens.[1]

Bland was honored upon her return, alongside other American Olympians, at a parade in New York City.[8] She served on the Ozark A. A. U. Women's Track and Field Committee, and coached a track program for girls in St. Louis, after her Olympic win.[4][9] She was head finish judge at an invitational relay for women in Edwardsville, Illinois in 1965.[10] she later earned a bachelor's degree in interior design at the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis.[11]

Later life

Harriet Bland married professional golfer William W. Green in 1939.[12] They had a son, William C. Green, who subsequently had five sons, including Marshall Heard Bland Green of Wellsville, New York. She survived a stroke in 1974 and used a wheelchair after that. She was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1983.[4] She died from a heart attack at her son's home in Fort Worth, Texas, in 1991, aged 76 years.[11]

References

  1. [1]
    "Harriet Bland Bio, Stats, and Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 18, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2015.
  2. [2]
    Harriet Bland. trackfield.brinkster.net
  3. [3]
    Scott, John G. (March 23, 1932). "17-Year-Old Girl Suddenly Looms as St. Louis Olympic Hope at Sprint Distances". St. Louis Globe-Democrat. p. 16. Retrieved August 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. [4]
    Becht, June Wuest (May 10, 1983). "'Golden Girls' of 1936 Made Olympic History". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 33. Retrieved August 7, 2021.
  5. [5]
    "Paper to Sponsor Campaign to Send Girl to Olympics". St. Louis Globe-Democrat. July 9, 1936. p. 7. Retrieved August 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. [6]
    "Only $40.50 Needed to Attain $500 Goal for Trip to Europe". St. Louis Globe-Democrat. July 10, 1936. p. 9. Retrieved August 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. [7]
    "Harriet Bland Loses Handbag at Sailing Time". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. July 15, 1936. p. 17. Retrieved August 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. [8]
    "Harriet Bland to be Honored in New York". St. Louis Globe-Democrat. September 3, 1936. p. 9. Retrieved August 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. [9]
    "Harriet Bland Again to Coach Track Team". St. Louis Globe-Democrat. November 11, 1938. p. 17. Retrieved August 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. [10]
    "2 Former Olympians to Officiate Relays". The Edwardsville Intelligencer. June 23, 1965. p. 10. Retrieved August 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. [11]
    "Harriet Green; Won Olympic Gold in '36". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 10, 1991. p. 67. Retrieved August 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. [12]
    "Harriet Bland Weds William W. Green". The St. Louis Star and Times. May 9, 1939. p. 18. Retrieved August 7, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
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