| Summary: | Track and field athlete Willye B. White was born on December 31, 1939, in Money, Mississippi. Competing in the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games, she earned a silver medal and became the first American woman ever to medal in the long jump. She also participated in the next four Olympiads, earning another silver medal in the 1964 Tokyo Games. In 1959, White set an American record for the long jump. She moved to Chicago in 1960 and began working as a public health administrator in 1965, earning a B.A. degree from Chicago State University in 1976. In 1990, White founded the WBW Hang on Productions, a sports and fitness consultancy. A year later, she founded the Willye White Foundation, helping kids to develop self-esteem and become productive citizens through initiatives such as the Robert Taylor Girls Athletic Program. White passed away from pancreatic cancer on February 6, 2007.
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