Bobbie Rosenfeld
Encyclopedia
Fanny Rosenfeld (December 28, 1904, in Dneipropetrovsk, Russia — November 14, 1969) was a Canadian athlete, who earned a gold medal
for the 400 metre relay and a silver medal
for the 100 metre at the 1928 Summer Olympics
in Amsterdam
. She was called the "best Canadian female athlete of the half-century" and a star at basketball, hockey, softball, and tennis. She was named Canada's Female Athlete of the First Half-Century (1900–1950). She also was called Bobbie for her "bobbed
" haircut. The Bobbie Rosenfeld Award
is named in her honour.
, Ontario. Her father Max Rosenfeld operated a junk business and her mother Sarah, who gave birth to three more girls, ran the home. Fanny attended Central School and Barrie Collegiate Institute, where she excelled in sports. In 1922, the Rosenfeld family moved to Toronto. For leisure, she joined the Y.W.H.A. and was a center for their basketball team. That year, they won both the Toronto and Ontario championships. Her legend would grow in 1923 at a picnic in Beaverton. She entered a 100 yards (91.4 m) dash and defeated the Canadian champion, Rosa Grosse. Later that year, she competed in a track meet at the Canadian National Exhibition
.
In addition to track and field, Rosenfeld played basketball on Toronto’s Young Women’s Hebrew Association (YWHA) team that twice went to the finals of the national championship. She played on city championship teams in ice hockey, fastball, and softball. In 1924, having only just taken up the sport, Rosenfeld claimed the title of the Toronto Ladies Grass Court Tennis championship. She also competed in lacrosse, golf, and speed skating.
In the spring of 1939, Rosenfeld was the manager of Langley’s Lakesides softball team. The team played an exhibition game in front of 14,000 fans at Madison Square Garden
.
and claim a gold medal in the 4x100 relay. In the 100 yards (91.4 m) dash, Rosenfeld earned a silver medal.
, and the condition forced her to stop competing in 1933. A year later she was coach of the Canadian women’s track and field team at the British Commonwealth Games in London, England. During the 1930s, she was an administrator and official in women’s softball and ice hockey in Ontario. In 1936, Rosenfeld would turn her attention to journalism. She began to work in the sports department of the Globe and Mail newspaper. In 1937, she introduced a column called Feminine Sports Reel and was a staunch advocate of women’s sport. For 18 years, Rosenfeld covered women's sports. In 1955, she was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame. Her last column appeared on December 3, 1958 but she continued to work for the newspaper until 1966.
Fanny Bobbie Rosenfeld died on November 13, 1969 in Toronto and is buried at Lambton Mills Cemetery.
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...
for the 400 metre relay and a silver medal
Silver medal
A silver medal is a medal awarded to the second place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and contests with similar formats....
for the 100 metre at the 1928 Summer Olympics
1928 Summer Olympics
The 1928 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Amsterdam had bid for the 1920 and 1924 Olympic Games, but had to give way to war-victim Antwerp, Belgium, and Pierre de...
in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
. She was called the "best Canadian female athlete of the half-century" and a star at basketball, hockey, softball, and tennis. She was named Canada's Female Athlete of the First Half-Century (1900–1950). She also was called Bobbie for her "bobbed
Bob cut
A "bob cut" is a short haircut for women in which the hair is typically cut straight around the head at about jaw-level, often with a fringe at the front.-The beginning:...
" haircut. The Bobbie Rosenfeld Award
Bobbie Rosenfeld Award
The Bobbie Rosenfeld Award is an annual award given to Canada's female athlete of the year. The sports writers of the Canadian Press first conducted a poll to determine the nation's top female in 1933, naming golfer Ada Mackenzie the winner. The CP formalized the poll into an award in 1978,...
is named in her honour.
Early life
In 1904, Rosenfeld immigrated to Canada with her parents and older brother when she was still an infant; they settled in BarrieBarrie
Barrie may refer to:* Barrie, city in Ontario, Canada* Barrie , Canadian federal electoral district* Barrie , provincial electoral district* Barrie—Simcoe—Bradford, former Canadian electoral district...
, Ontario. Her father Max Rosenfeld operated a junk business and her mother Sarah, who gave birth to three more girls, ran the home. Fanny attended Central School and Barrie Collegiate Institute, where she excelled in sports. In 1922, the Rosenfeld family moved to Toronto. For leisure, she joined the Y.W.H.A. and was a center for their basketball team. That year, they won both the Toronto and Ontario championships. Her legend would grow in 1923 at a picnic in Beaverton. She entered a 100 yards (91.4 m) dash and defeated the Canadian champion, Rosa Grosse. Later that year, she competed in a track meet at the Canadian National Exhibition
Canadian National Exhibition
Canadian National Exhibition , also known as The Ex, is an annual event that takes place at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada during the 18 days leading up to and including Labour Day Monday. With an attendance of approximately 1.3 million visitors each season, it is Canada’s largest...
.
Athletic career
At the 1925 Ontario Ladies Track and Field championships, in a single day performance, Rosenfeld placed first in discus, shot put, 220 yards (201.2 m) dash, low hurdles, and long jump, and placed second in the javelin and 100 yards (91.4 m) dash. In the mid-1920s, she held national records in the 440 yards (402.3 m) open relay with a CNE relay team, as well as in the standing broad jump, discus, javelin, and shot put.In addition to track and field, Rosenfeld played basketball on Toronto’s Young Women’s Hebrew Association (YWHA) team that twice went to the finals of the national championship. She played on city championship teams in ice hockey, fastball, and softball. In 1924, having only just taken up the sport, Rosenfeld claimed the title of the Toronto Ladies Grass Court Tennis championship. She also competed in lacrosse, golf, and speed skating.
In the spring of 1939, Rosenfeld was the manager of Langley’s Lakesides softball team. The team played an exhibition game in front of 14,000 fans at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
.
Hockey
Rosenfeld was a hockey player in the 1920s and was dubbed superwoman of ladies' hockey. During the 1920s and 30’s, she was one of Canada’s most famous female hockey players. Rosenfeld was a centre on the 1927 and '29 Ontario champion Toronto Patterson Pats. The Pats were part of the North Toronto Ladies' City League. Rosenfeld helped form the Ladies Ontario Hockey Association in 1924. Rosenfeld was president of the LOHA from 1934 to 1939. By late 1936, Rosenfeld was not only the LOHA president, but served as the secretary and the treasurer. She was considered the most outstanding women’s hockey player in all of Ontario during 1931–32.Olympics
During the Olympic trials for the 1928 Games, Rosenfeld set numerous Canadian track and field records. These records included the running broad jump, standing broad jump and the discus. Her time in the 100 metres was four-fifths of a second slower than the world record at that time. She would go on to compete in the 1928 Summer Olympics1928 Summer Olympics
The 1928 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Amsterdam had bid for the 1920 and 1924 Olympic Games, but had to give way to war-victim Antwerp, Belgium, and Pierre de...
and claim a gold medal in the 4x100 relay. In the 100 yards (91.4 m) dash, Rosenfeld earned a silver medal.
Retirement
Rosenfeld developed arthritisArthritis
Arthritis is a form of joint disorder that involves inflammation of one or more joints....
, and the condition forced her to stop competing in 1933. A year later she was coach of the Canadian women’s track and field team at the British Commonwealth Games in London, England. During the 1930s, she was an administrator and official in women’s softball and ice hockey in Ontario. In 1936, Rosenfeld would turn her attention to journalism. She began to work in the sports department of the Globe and Mail newspaper. In 1937, she introduced a column called Feminine Sports Reel and was a staunch advocate of women’s sport. For 18 years, Rosenfeld covered women's sports. In 1955, she was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame. Her last column appeared on December 3, 1958 but she continued to work for the newspaper until 1966.
Fanny Bobbie Rosenfeld died on November 13, 1969 in Toronto and is buried at Lambton Mills Cemetery.
Awards and honours
- 1924 – Toronto grass-courts tennis championship title
- Five 1st place and two 2nd place titles at Ontario Ladies’ Track and Field Championships
- World record (since broken), 100 yd (91.4 m). dash (11.0 seconds)
- 1931 – Leading home run hitter in softball league
- 1931–32 – Most outstanding woman hockey player in Ontario
- Canada's Female Athlete of the First Half-Century (1900–1950)
- Bobbie Rosenfeld Park – a City of Toronto park and open space located between Rogers CentreRogers CentreRogers Centre is a multi-purpose stadium, in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated next to the CN Tower, near the shores of Lake Ontario. Opened in 1989, it is home to the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball and the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League...
and CN TowerCN TowerThe CN Tower is a communications and observation tower in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Standing tall, it was completed in 1976, becoming the world's tallest free-standing structure and world's tallest tower at the time. It held both records for 34 years until the completion of the Burj...
- City of Toronto plaque honouring the athlete in a planter at the foot of the CN TowerCN TowerThe CN Tower is a communications and observation tower in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Standing tall, it was completed in 1976, becoming the world's tallest free-standing structure and world's tallest tower at the time. It held both records for 34 years until the completion of the Burj...
.
- City of Toronto plaque honouring the athlete in a planter at the foot of the CN Tower
- Government of Canada plaque at Allandale Recreation Centre in Barrie, OntarioBarrie, OntarioBarrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, located on the western shore of Lake Simcoe, approximately 90 km north of Toronto. Although located in Simcoe County, the city is politically independent...
in honour of the athlete who settled and grew up in the city.
See also
- List of select Jewish track and field athletes
External links
- Fanny "Bobbie" Rosenfeld in Jewish Women Encyclopedie, 2005
- Bobbie Rosenfeld goes for the gold
- Biography: Bobbie Rosenfeld, 1904–1969
- Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, Honoured Member: Bobbie Rosenfeld with Image gallery.
- Fanny Rosenfeld at The Canadian EncyclopediaThe Canadian EncyclopediaThe Canadian Encyclopedia is a source of information on Canada. It is available online, at no cost. The Canadian Encyclopedia is available in both English and French and includes some 14,000 articles in each language on a wide variety of subjects including history, popular culture, events, people,...
Books
- Anne Dublin, Bobbie Rosenfeld: The Olympian who Could Do Everything, Second Story Press, Toronto, 2004, code ISBN 1-896764-82-7
- Cruxton J Bradley and Wilson, W. Douglas "Spotlight Canada: Fourth Edition"