| Olympic medal record | ||
| Women’s Swimming | ||
|---|---|---|
Competitor for  United States |
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| Gold | 1932 Los Angeles | 100 m freestyle |
| Gold | 1932 Los Angeles | 400 m freestyle |
| Gold | 1932 Los Angeles | 4x100 m freestyle |
Helene Madison (June 19, 1913 – November 27, 1970) was an American swimmer. She won three gold medals in freestyle at the 1932 Summer Olympic Games. She was born in Madison, Wisconsin.
In sixteen months in 1930 and 1931, she broke sixteen world records in various distances. Following the 1932 Olympics she appeared in the films The Human Fish and The Warrior's Husband and hence, as a professional, was not allowed to participate in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin. After her swimming career, she did odd jobs as a swimming instructor, department store clerk and a nurse. Divorced thrice and living alone, she died of throat cancer in 1970 in Seattle, Washington.
She was inducted into the US Olympic Hall of Fame in 1992.
References
- Madison, Helene (1914-1970) at HistoryLink
- Helene Madison at the Internet Movie Database
- Wallechinsky, David (2004). The Complete Book of the Summer Olympics, Toronto: Sport Classic Books. ISBN 1-894963-34-2
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| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Martha Norelius |
Women's 1500 metres Freestyle World Record Holder (Long Course) July 15, 1931 – June 26, 1936 |
Succeeded by Grethe Frederiksen |
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