Stanislawa Walasiewicz was born in Wierzchownia, Poland, then part of the Russian Empire, in 1911, but when she was still a child her family emigrated to the United States. She grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, but would not obtain naturalization until 1947, after which she adopted the name Stella Walsh. Her talent for athletics led her to participate in the 1930 United States championships, which accepted immigrants, and she was proclaimed champion in the 100 yards, 220 yards and long jump. Later she would be the first woman to break the six-meter barrier in the long jump. News of her existence reached Poland, which selected her for Los Angeles 1932, where she would win gold in the 100 meters with 11.9, equaling the world record, and would be sixth in the discus.
Her masculine appearance sparked all kinds of comment. After the Games she embarked with the rest of the Polish expedition to be hailed as a national heroine in her native country, where she stayed for a few months, ran several races and broke the world records for the 100 and 200 meters, before returning to the United States.
In Berlin 1936, she had to settle for silver in the 100m, beaten at the finish line by the American Helen Stephens, nicknamed ‘The Fulton Flash’ by the Polish press. After this race, a singular incident occurred: the Polish delegation, which had endured many uncomfortable comments about the appearance of its champion, now claimed that Stephens was a man. The Appeals Committee was stunned, such a case had never occurred before, but the Poles themselves offered a solution: Helen should strip in front of the judges, perhaps expecting that out of modesty (let’s mentally transport ourselves back to the time when showing the neck or ankle was immoral) she would not do so. But she did, and it turned out that she was a woman, so the claim was dropped and she was awarded the gold. In her famous documentary film ‘Olympia’, Leni Riefenstahl records the scene, treated with an elegant veil.
Helen Stephens would later have a run-in with Hitler. She was the fourth runner in the 4x100m, a race in which the Germans were clear favourites, but they dropped the baton during a relay, so the gold went to the Americans. Stephens would later recount that in the box Hitler had overstepped his bounds, looking at her lustfully and groping her, and that he had even tried to invite her to spend a few days at his Alpine residence in Berchetsgaden, which she refused. When she refused, Hitler, who felt irresistible, commented: “This woman would not pass a sexuality test.”
After Berlin 1932 he left athletics to become a professional in the softballand later in basketball. He fought in the Marines’ auxiliary corps. In the eighties he returned to the courts in veterans’ competitions, where he was unbeatable.
Stanislawa Walasiewicz won the 100m and 200m and finished second in the long jump and 4x100m at the 1938 European Championships. World War II put an end to her Olympic career (there were no more Games until London 1948), but she continued to compete in the United States, where she accumulated 41 national championship titles in the sprint, jump, discus and pentathlon, the latter at the age of 44. She married the boxer Neil Olson, from whom she took his surname, but the marriage did not last long. She was very active in promoting sport among young people, especially those of Polish origin. She died in 1980 in Cleveland, the city where she always lived, accidentally hit by a stray bullet during a robbery of a supermarket.
Her death brought widespread remembrance of her great athlete status, especially when an autopsy revealed she was intersex – born with a combination of biological traits not exclusive to men or women.
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