One of the world's top women athletes of the 1950s, Mildred McDaniel excelled both in track and field and basketball. She acquired her nickname of "Tex" on the basketball floor because her teammates said she dribbled like a Texan. At Tuskegee Institute, where she was coached by Hall of Famer Cleve Abbott, McDaniel was the U.S. women's high jump champion in 1953, 1955 and 1956 and was the U.S. indoor champion in 1955 and 1956 as well. She also was the 1955 Pan-American Games winner with a leap of 5' 6 1/4", a meet mark that stood until 1967. Though she twice raised the U.S. high jump record during 1956, she entered the Olympic competition as an underdog. She emerged as gold medalist with a world record leap of 5' 9 1/4", a resounding 3 1/2" higher than her closest competitor. McDaniel retired following the Olympics and later became a physical education teacher in California.
World Record: High Jump - 1.76 m (December 1, 1956 - )
1956 Olympics: High Jump - 1.76 m (1st) 1953 USA Outdoors: High Jump (1st) 1955 USA Indoors: High Jump (1st) 1955 USA Outdoors: High Jump (1st) 1956 USA Indoors: High Jump (1st) 1956 USA Outdoors: High Jump (1st) 1955 Pan-Am Games: High Jump - 1.68 m (1st)
Teacher