Barbara Ann Ferrell, Mrs. Edmonson (born July 28, 1947,
Hattiesburg, Mississippi) is an American former
track and field
Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...
athlete who competed mainly in the
100-metre dash. She was the U.S.
national champion in that event in 1967 and 1969 and is a member of the U.S. National Track & Field Hall of Fame.
Ferrell competed for the United States at the
1968 Summer Olympics
The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...
held in
Mexico City
Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...
,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
in the 100 metres, where she finished second to teammate and 1964 gold medalist
Wyomia Tyus. She finished fourth in the 200 metres final. The two then joined with fellow Americans
Margaret Bailes
Margaret Johnson Bailes (born January 23, 1951) is an American athlete who competed in the 100 and 200 meters.
Early life
Margaret Johnson Bailes was born in the Bronx. When she was five, she moved to Eugene, Oregon with her family after her fa ...
and
Mildrette Netter
Mildrette Netter (born June 16, 1948 in Rosedale, Mississippi) is an American athlete who competed mainly in the 100 meters.
She competed for the United States in the 1968 Summer Olympics held in Mexico City, Mexico in the 4 x 100 meters where ...
to take the gold medal in the 4 × 100 m relay.
At the
1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and commonly known as Munich 1972 (german: München 1972), was an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ...
in
Munich, Germany
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
, after a season in which she had been hampered by injury, Ferrell finished seventh in the 100 metres final, and was eliminated in the semifinals of the 200 metres.
She was named to the U.S. National Track & Field Hall of Fame in 1988 and, that same year, to the
Mt. SAC Relays Hall of Fame.
Ferrell served as women's track coach at the
University of Southern California
, mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it"
, religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist
, established =
, accreditation = WSCUC
, type = Private research university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $8.1 ...
, and while there became one of the few female coaches in an
NCAA Division I
NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major collegiate athletic ...
program to handle both the men's and women's sprinters. She was named head coach for the women's track and field and
cross country programs at the
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes th ...
in 2002. Ferrell, also known as Coach E, retired as the head track coach at
San Marino High School
San Marino High School (SMHS) is a public high school in San Marino, California, United States, and the only high school in the San Marino Unified School District, Los Angeles County. According to the 2015 California Academic Performance Index S ...
and passed the position onto her former pupil
Jeff Williams.
Ferrell obtained her bachelor's degree in
sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation an ...
from California State College, Los Angeles, now
California State University, Los Angeles
California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public university in Los Angeles, California. It is part of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degrees, 122 master's degrees, ...
, in 1969. She was inducted into the university's Athletics Hall of Fame in 1986.
She is married to former
UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...
football and
professional
A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and ski ...
track great Warren Edmonson, who has served as head track and field coach at
California State University, Dominguez Hills
California State University, Dominguez Hills (CSUDH, CSU Dominguez Hills, or Cal State Dominguez Hills) is a public university in Carson, California. It was founded in 1960 and is part of the California State University (CSU) system.
In 2020, ...
since 2002. While competing for
St. Bernard High School, their daughters Malika and Miya were a key component of the school's
national record-setting
4 × 100 metres relay
The 4 × 100 metres relay or sprint relay is an athletics track event run in lanes over one lap of the track with four runners completing 100 metres each. The first runners must begin in the same stagger as for the indiv ...
team.
Their record set in 1997 lasted for seven years.
References
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferrell, Barbara
Living people
1947 births
Track and field athletes from California
Sportspeople from Hattiesburg, Mississippi
American female sprinters
African-American female track and field athletes
Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field
Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field
Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics
Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics
Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field)
Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States
Athletes (track and field) at the 1967 Pan American Games
Medalists at the 1968 Summer Olympics
Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field)
FISU World University Games gold medalists for the United States
USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners
USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners
Medalists at the 1967 Summer Universiade
Medalists at the 1967 Pan American Games
Olympic female sprinters
21st-century African-American people
21st-century African-American women
20th-century African-American sportspeople
20th-century African-American women