And I’m not talking about the greatest women athlete. I’m talking the greatest athlete ever - man or woman.

Mildred Didrikson (1911-1956) came from a place called Beaumont, Texas. As a little girl, Mildred hit five home runs in a baseball game, which gave her the nickname she’d be known as for the rest of her life. It goes without saying, she was named after Babe Ruth.

In high school, Babe played in a wide variety of sports (the only sport she didn’t play was football - because the coach wouldn’t let her play). She exelled in basketball, as the Beaumont team never lost a game when she played.

After high school, she played on a semi-pro team in Dallas, leading them to two national championships. While in Dallas, Babe also showcased her athletic prowess in swimming and diving. But it was track and field where Babe hit her true mark.

In the 1932 Olympic try-outs in Evanston, Illinois, Babe was the sole member of the Dallas team, but in three hours won five events out of eight, tied another, setting three world records, and scoring 30 points for Dallas. The second-place team, which had 22 members, scored fewer. It will be forever known as the greatest individual achievement in track and field history.

Later that year, she competed in the Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Babe set three world records in her three events, but had to settle for two gold and one silver in the javelin, 80-meter hurdles, and the high jump. Babe is the the only athlete to ever medal in throwing, running and jumping events in the same Olympics.

After the games, Babe was a national celebrity. To capitalize on her fame, she starred in many different sports, finally settling on golf.

In 1938, Babe was paired in a PGA tournament with wrestler George Zaharias. Though she has always been rumored to have been a lesbian (there is no proof) Babe and George hit it off, marrying within a year. George became Babe’s manager for the rest of her career.

Throughout the 1940s, Babe Zaharias dominated women’s golf. In 1947, she became the first American golfer to win the British Women’s Open. It would be one of ten majors Babe would win throughout her career.

After forming the Ladies Professional Golf Association in 1949, the Associated Press voted Babe the Greatest Female Athlete of the First Half of the Twentieth Century. The AP would name her Women Athlete of the Year six times (more than even the men).

In 1953, Babe was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Deciding not to let that get to her, Babe came back to the golf course, and in 1954, won the Women’s U.S. Open by a record 12 strokes.

The cancer, however, did not go away, and she died in 1956 at the age of 45. But before that, Babe Didrikson Zaharias had paved the way for countless female athletes in future generations to follow in her footsteps.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

While playing for her high school basketball team, Babe once scored 106 in a single game.

Though she is known for playing baseball, basketball, track, and golf, Babe is noted for other sports as well. They include archery, bass, billiards, boxing, roller skating tennis, and many more.

It is also interesting to note that Babe excelled in bowling as well. Her best game was a 237.