Immigrant of the Day: Stanisława Walasiewicz (Poland)

Stanisława Walasiewicz (1911-80) was born in Rypin, Poland.  Her family immigrated to the United States when she was two. Walasiewicz ran for Poland in the 1932 Summer Olympics. In both the heats and the semi-finals of the 100 meters, Walasiewicz equalled the then-world record of 11.9 seconds, a feat she repeated in the final, which she won. The same day, she also finished 6th in the discus.

Although not a U.S. citizen, Walasiewicz did participate in, and won, numerous American national championships, usually under the name of Stella Walsh. In the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, she unsuccessfully attempted to defend her Olympic title.

She married in 1947 and was granted citizenship as Stella Walsh Olson. She won her last US title at age forty, in 1951. Later, Walsh was shot and killed as a bystander to an armed robbery. An autopsy showed that she was in fact intersex, with externally female genitals.

In Cleveland there is a city-owned recreational center named after Stella Walsh, on Broadway Avenue.

KJ