From Leg Brace to Gold Medal

On September 2, 1960, in Rome's Stadio Olimpico, a young woman from Clarksville, Tennessee crouched in the starting blocks of the 100-meter final. Wilma Rudolph — once a child so weakened by polio that doctors doubted she would ever walk without a brace — exploded down the track and crossed the finish line in 11. 0 seconds. The Italian crowd erupted, calling her "La Gazzella Nera" — the Black Gazelle.…