Fire on the Track

Betty Robinson and the Triumph of the Early Olympic Women

By: Roseanne Montillo

Narrated by: Kathleen McInery

The inspiring and irresistible true story of the women who broke barriers and finish-line ribbons in pursuit of Olympic Gold

When Betty Robinson assumed the starting position at the 1928 Olympic Games in Amsterdam, she was participating in what was only her fourth-ever organized track meet. She crossed the finish line as a gold medalist and the fastest woman in the world. This improbable athletic phenom was an ordinary high school student, discovered running for a train in rural Illinois mere months before her Olympic debut. Amsterdam made her a star.

But at the top of her game, her career (and life) almost came to a tragic end when a plane she and her cousin were piloting crashed. So dire was Betty's condition that she was taken to the local morgue; only upon the undertaker's inspection was it determined she was still breathing. Betty, once a natural runner who always coasted to victory, soon found herself fighting to walk.

While Betty was recovering, the other women of Track and Field were given the chance to shine in the Los Angeles Games, building on Betty's pioneering role as the first female Olympic champion in the sport. These athletes became more visible and more accepted, as stars like Babe Didrikson and Stella Walsh showed the world what women could do. And - miraculously - through grit and countless hours of training, Betty earned her way onto the 1936 Olympic team, again locking her sights on gold as she and her American teammates went up against the German favorites in Hitler's Berlin.

Told in vivid detail with novelistic flair, Fire on the Track is an unforgettable portrait of these trailblazers in action.

©2017 Roseanne Montillo (P)2017 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

" Fire on the Track tells the powerful story of one woman's success in breaking an early glass ceiling in women's Olympic sports. The triumph, tragedy, and redemption that punctuated Betty Robinson's life present a commentary on 1930s America and the trailblazing courage of ordinary women to change the country's thinking about the abilities of their gender. Using anecdote and insight, Montillo has written an important book, bringing to light a resonant piece of history." (Lucinda Franks, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and author of Timeless: Love, Morgenthau and Me)

"Roseanne Montillo has written a must-read, exhilarating story about a remarkable time in American sports history when women proved that they could be champions. Going against cultural expectations, these athletes managed to achieve greatness during the toughest of times. Betty Robinson is a hero for the ages. Her breathtaking journey from catastrophe to ultimate victory made me stand up and cheer!" (Lydia Reeder, author of Dust Bowl Girls)

Great story

Betty Robinson was a trailblazer who also exhibited extraordinary resilience and courage, and this look at her life is a great story. Well-researched and written, it sent me to read much more about this woman who won the first woman's gold medal in the 100-yard dash at Amsterdam (actually it was the first Olympic gold medal won by a woman in any sport since they weren't allowed to compete in earlier Olympiads). That she came back from the edge of death in a plane crash to win another gold medal in the 1936 Olympics, is incredible stuff. Highly recommend this book. I hope more people become acquainted with Betty Robinson and her wonderful story and life.