Fanny “Bobbie” Rosenfeld
At the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics her lead-off leg in the 4x100-metre relay left spectators in awe and other countries unable to close the gap. It could well have been Fanny “Bobbie” Rosenfeld’s second gold medal had she not been awarded silver in the 100, losing to an American in a split judging decision before the advent of photo finish technology.
And what’s less known was that in the 800, not Rosenfeld’s specialty, she came up behind 17-year-old Jean Thompson, who was faltering, and coaxed her on, running beside her, refusing to push on, and finished behind her teammate in fifth.
Rosenfeld, who had immigrated to Ontario as a youngster, had no formal athletic training but excelled in whatever she tried — from jumping, throwing and running on the track to baseball, basketball, hockey and tennis — often while wearing men’s baggy swim trunks and her father’s borrowed socks.