Jesse Owens Biography

Jesse Owens, byname of James Cleveland Owens, (born September 12, 1913, Oakville, Alabama, U.S.--died March 31, 1980, Phoenix, Arizona), American track-and-field athlete who set a world record in the conducting broad jump (also referred to as long jump) that stood for 25 years and who won four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin. His four Olympic victories were a setback to Adolf Hitler's aim to utilize the Games to show Aryan superiority.

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