Maritza Correia Biography

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Maritza Correia made history in 2002, when she became the first black woman to break an American record. She later became the first black woman to make and actually have a spot on the Olympic swim team. Born on December 23, 1981 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Maritza Corriea is best known for her hard work in swimming and being the first black woman to make it to the Olympic swimming. She started swimming when just only 7 was! She had scoliosis and swimming helped take her mind off of her disorder. In 1990, she joined the Brandon Blue Wave swim club. She continued swimming at Tampa Bay Technical High School and continued to compete. In 2004, all her hard work and swimming finally paid off. She took home a silver medal in the 400-meter freestyle relay on Athens, Greece. Her winning streak continued when she took four gold medals in 2005 at the World University Games, in the 50-meter freestyle, 400- meter freestyle relay, 800-meter breaststroke relay, and the 400-meter medley relay. She later retired because she had very bad pains in her shoulders. She still remains groundbreaking force in the world of competitive swimming. …show more content…
She’s also the oldest woman to win an Olympic gold medal in the track and field category. Born April 15, 1957, Ashford started competing in high school. She was inspired by Wilma Rudolph to become a runner in her early teens. After high school, she attended University of California, Los Angeles, where she was THE track star of the school. In 1979, she won two World Cup titles, and then won another two world championship in 1981. Ashford was only a freshman in college when she made the Olympics. Before long Evelyn became one of the greatest sprinters on all times. Ashford had her last Olympic game in 1992 then she retired. Evelyn Ashford been honored several times. She was put in the Hall of Fame In 1997 and

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