Mildred ella didrikson zaharias biography for kids

(1911-1956)

Who Was Babe Didrikson Zaharias?

Athlete and Olympic champion Babe Didrikson Zaharias earned her nickname "Babe" by hitting five home runs in one childhood baseball game. At the 1932 Olympics, she won medals in the hurdles, javelin throw and high jump.

By the 1940s, she was the greatest woman golfer of all time. The Associated Press declared Babe Zaharias to be the "Woman Athlete of the Half-Century" in 1950.

Early Life

Zaharias was born Mildred Ella Didrikson on June 26, 1911, in Port Arthur, Texas, the daughter of Ole Didrikson and Hannah Marie Olsen.

Babe Didrikson Zaharias | Biography & Facts | Britannica

Her father and mother were from Norway, where her mother had been an outstanding skier and skater. Her father was a ship's carpenter and cabinetmaker. The family, who spelled their name Didriksen, moved to Beaumont, Texas, when Mildred was 3.

Times were often difficult for the large Didrikson family, and as an adolescent Mildred worked at many part-time jobs, including Babe Didrikson Zaharias facts for kids - Kids encyclopedia NYJ