Barbara Pearl Jones is a retired American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 athlete, who competed in the 1952 Summer Olympics

1952 Summer Olympics

The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were cancelled due to World War II...

 and in the 1960 Summer Olympics

1960 Summer Olympics

The 1960 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held from August 25 to September 11, 1960 in Rome, Italy...

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She lives in the Atlanta, Georgia

Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...

 area.

Jones competed for the United States at the 1952 Summer Olympics

1952 Summer Olympics

The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were cancelled due to World War II...

 held in Helsinki

Helsinki

Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...

, Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

, where she won the gold medal

Gold medal

A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...

 in the 4 x 100 m relay

4 x 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 begin in the same stagger as for the individual 400 m race...

 with her teammates Mae Faggs

Mae Faggs

Heriwentha Faggs Starr1 was an American athlete who mainly competed in the sprint events. She graduated from Bayside High School, and then went to Tennessee State University to run under Hall of Fame coach Ed Temple, one of the first U.S...

, Janet Moreau

Janet Moreau

Janet Teresa Moreau is an American athlete who competed mainly in the 100 meters.She competed for the United States in the 1952 Summer Olympics held in Helsinki, Finland in the 4 x 100 meters where she won the Gold medal with her teammates Mae Faggs, Barbara Jones and Catherine Hardy.- External...

 and Catherine Hardy

Catherine Hardy

Catherine Hardy Lavender is an African-American athlete who competed mainly in the 100 meters. She won an Olympic gold medal in the 4 x 100 metres relay at the 1952 Olympic Summer Games in Helsinki, Finland...

. At the age of 15 years 123 days, Jones of the Chicago CYO is the youngest female of any nation to have won an Olympic gold medal in track & field.

She missed the following Olympics, but returned in the 1960 Summer Olympics

1960 Summer Olympics

The 1960 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held from August 25 to September 11, 1960 in Rome, Italy...

 held in Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 in the 4 x 100 meters, where she again won the gold medal with her teammates Martha Hudson

Martha Hudson

Martha B. Hudson Pennyman is a former American athlete, who mainly competed in the 100 meters. She was born in Eastman, Georgia and attended Tennessee State University....

, Lucinda Williams

Lucinda Williams (athlete)

Lucinda Williams Adams is an American athlete, who mainly competed in the 100 meters. She competed for the United States in the 4 x 100 m relay at the 1960 Summer Olympics held in Rome, Italy, where she won the gold medal with her team mates Martha Hudson, Barbara Jones and Olympic 100 and 200...

 and Olympic 100

100 metres

The 100 metres, or 100-metre dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, it is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896...

 and 200 meters

200 metres

A 200 metres race is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 m track, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques are needed to successfully run the race. A slightly shorter race, called the stadion and run on a straight track, was the first...

 champion Wilma Rudolph

Wilma Rudolph

Wilma Glodean Rudolph was an American athlete. Rudolph was considered the fastest woman in the world in the 1960s and competed in two Olympic Games, in 1956 and in 1960....

. She attended Tennessee State University

Tennessee State University

Tennessee State University is a land-grant university located in Nashville, Tennessee. TSU is the only state-funded historically black university in Tennessee.-History:...

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