Margaret Woodbridge
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Margaret Darling Woodbridge (January 6, 1902 – February 23, 1995), also known by her married name Margaret Presley, was an American competition swimmer for the Detroit Athletic Club, a 1920 Antwerp Olympic gold medalist, and a world record-holder. She was a member of the first U.S. Olympic Women's swimming team.[1]
Swimming for the Detroit Athletic Club, she finished first at the Women's Aquatic Club 4-mile swim in Michigan with a time of 1:09.13, over two minutes ahead of her closest competitor, Euphrasia Donnely. The four mile route went from the Fellowcraft Athletic Club to the Detroit Boat Club.[2]
Woodbridge, trained by Hall of Fame Coach Matthew Mann of the Detroit Athletic Club, set national records in both the 200 and 500-yard freestyle events and gave serious competition to the dominant swimmers from the Women’s Swimming Association of New York.[3]
1920 Olympics
At the finals of the 1920 Olympic Trials, Woodbridge placed fifth in the 100-meter freestyle and fourth in the 300-meter freestyle. Though she qualified only as an alternate, she would improve her times in Olympic competition and play a major part in the winning of medals for the U.S. Women's team.[3][1]
Gold medal
Later representing the United States at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium,[4] she won the gold medal as a member of the winning U.S. team in the women's 4×100-meter freestyle relay.[4][5] Woodbridge and her American relay teammates Frances Schroth, Irene Guest and Ethelda Bleibtrey set a new world record of 5:11.6 in the event final.[4]
Silver medal
Individually, Woodbridge received a silver medal for her second-place performance of 4:42.8 in the women's 300-meter freestyle, finishing behind American teammate Ethelda Bleibtrey of New York's Women's Swimming Association. Having previously broken the world record in the 100-meter event, Bleibtrey then broke the world record for the women's 300-meter event as well in both the heats and the finals. The prior record had been 4:43.6, which Bleibtrey set earlier in the year. The 300-meter freestyle would never again be an Olympic event. In the following Olympics in 1924 and from then on, women competed at the more standard distance of 400 meters.[6][4][7]
Honors
Woodbridge was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame as an "Honor Pioneer Swimmer" in 1989.[3]
See also
- List of members of the International Swimming Hall of Fame
- List of Olympic medalists in swimming (women)
- World record progression 4 × 100 metres freestyle relay
References
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- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ "Victory Goes to D.A.C. Miss", Detroit Free Press, Detroit, Michigan, 6 September 1921, pg. 13
- ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ a b c d Sports-Reference.com, Olympic Sports, Athletes, Margaret Woodbridge. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
- ↑ Sports-Reference.com, Olympic Sports, United States Swimming at the 1920 Antwerpen Summer Games. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ Sports-Reference.com, Olympic Sports, Swimming at the 1920 Antwerpen Summer Games, Women's 300 metres Freestyle Final. Retrieved November 29, 2012.
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External links
Template:Footer USA Swimming 1920 Olympics Template:Footer Olympic Champions 4x100 m Freestyle Relay Women
- Pages with script errors
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- Pages with broken file links
- 1902 births
- 1995 deaths
- American female freestyle swimmers
- World record setters in swimming
- Medalists at the 1920 Summer Olympics
- Olympic gold medalists for the United States in swimming
- Olympic silver medalists for the United States in swimming
- Swimmers from Detroit
- Swimmers at the 1920 Summer Olympics
- 20th-century American sportswomen