在1904年的第3届圣路易斯奥运会上，一名勇敢的黑人选手站上了奥运会的赛场，并一举夺得两枚铜牌，他就是乔治·波格。

这名来自美国威斯康星大学的运动员在赛前便已经是美国大学生400米纪录的保持者。尽管他在圣路易斯奥运会的该项比赛中只获得了第6名，但他是现代奥林匹克运动史上参赛的第一名黑人运动员。400米并不是波格的强项，他最擅长的是跨栏。随后他参加了200米栏和400米栏，结果他在各有4人参赛的两个项目中分别战胜了一名选手，获得了两块铜牌，这也是现代奥运会中黑人选手赢得的最初奖牌。这让他不仅成为所有非裔美国人心目中的英雄，而且也赢得了美国白人的尊敬。

George Coleman Poage (November 6, 1880-April 11,1962) was the first African American athlete to win a medal in the Olympic Games, winning two bronze medals at the 1904 games in St. Louis.

Born in Hannibal, Missouri, his family moved to LaCrosse, Wisconsin when he was still a youngster. At LaCrosse High School Poage excelled as both a student and an athlete. He was easily the school's best athlete. As the second-best student in his class and its first African-American graduate, at commencement in 1899 he addressed the assembly as the salutatorian of his class.

The following fall he became a freshman at the University of Wisconsin. After competing with the freshman track squad in 1900, he joined the varsity track and field team during his sophomore year. Poage was the first black athlete to run for the UW, specializing in the short sprints and hurdles. A consistent point winner for his team, he quickly became well respected.

When the track coach was called out of town in 1902, the student newspaper The Daily Cardinal reported "while [Coach] Kilpatrick is absent, Mr. Poage will take charge of the track work."

The photo of George Poage (Captain of varsity track team) first row left of center.

Poage graduated in 1903 with a degree in History. His senior thesis was titled "An Investigation into the Economic Condition of the Negro in the State of Georgia During the Period of 1860-1900." He returned to the University for the 1903-04 school year to take graduate classes in History. To help support his extra year on campus, the athletic department hired him to be a trainer for the football team. In June 1904, he became the first African-American individual Big Ten track champion in conference history, placing first in both the 440-yard dash and the 220-yard hurdles.

The Milwaukee athletic club sponsored Poage to compete in the third Olympic games that were being held during the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis. Many prominent African-American leaders had called for a boycott of the games to protest racial segregation of the events in St. Louis. An integrated audience was not allowed at either the Olympics or the World's Fair as the organizers had built segregated facilities for the spectators. Poage chose to compete and became the first African-American to medal in the Games by winning the bronze in both the 220-yard and 440-yard hurdles.

（实习生徐忠 英语点津boeybb编辑） 


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