I 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1404 

To posthumously award a congressional gold medal to Wilma G. Rudolph. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 17, 2005 

Ms. KILPATRICK of Michigan (for herself, Mr. COOPER, Mr. WAMP, Ms. 

BORDALLO, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. LEWIS of 

Georgia, Mr. OWENS, Mrs. JONES of Ohio, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, 

Mr. RUSH, Mr. RANGEL, Ms. NORTON, Mr. MEEHAN, Mr. JEFFERSON, 

Mrs. MALONEY, and Mr. GORDON) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Financial Services 

A BILL 

To posthumously award a congressional gold medal to Wilma 

G. Rudolph. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. FINDINGS. 

4 Congress finds that— 

5 (1) Wilma G. Rudolph of Clarksville, Ten6 nessee, the 20th of 22 children, overcame a series of 

7 childhood diseases, including scarlet fever, double 

8 pneumonia, and polio, to become an athletic pioneer 

9 and champion in the State of Tennessee, the United 
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1 States, and the world, first as an outstanding bas2 ketball player and track athlete in Tennessee, then 

3 as a 3-time gold medal winner in the 1960 Olympics 

4 in Rome, and finally as a pioneer for racial equality, 

5 goodwill, and justice; 

6 (2) Wilma G. Rudolph’s winning of 3 gold med7 als in the 1960 Olympics served as an inspiration to 

8 athletes of all sports, all races, and both genders; 

9 (3) Wilma G. Rudolph’s ability to inspire en10 dured after her performance in the 1960 Olympics, 

11 as demonstrated by— 

12 (A) her receipt in 1987 of the National 

13 Collegiate Athletic Association’s Silver Anniver14 sary Award, the first time a woman ever re15 ceived the award; 

16 (B) her receipt of the 1989 Jackie Robin17 son Image Award of the National Association 

18 for the Advancement of Colored People 

19 (NAACP); 

20 (C) her induction into the National Track 

21 and Field Hall of Fame in 1974; 

22 (D) her receipt of the 1985 Humanitarian 

23 of the Year Award of the Special Olympics; and 
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1 (E) her receipt in 1993 of the National 

2 Sports Award, the only time a woman has re3 ceived the award; 

4 (4) Wilma G. Rudolph, a graduate of Tennessee 

5 State University, a successful businessperson, a 

6 mother, an athlete, a coach, and a teacher, who 

7 passed away on November 12, 1994, will forever re8 main an inspiration to all able-bodied and physically9 challenged individuals in overcoming odds; 

10 (5) Wilma G. Rudolph blazed a trail that 

11 helped all people understand the contributions of 

12 women to the world of athletics; 

13 (6) the legacy of Wilma C. Rudolph continues 

14 to serve as a particular inspiration to women; and 

15 (7) Wilma G Rudolph’s life truly embodied the 

16 American values of hard work, determination, and 

17 love of humanity. 

18 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

19 (a) PRESENTATION AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of 

20 the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tem21 pore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements 

22 for the presentation, on behalf of the Congress, of a gold 

23 medal of appropriate design, honoring Wilma G. Rudolph 

24 (posthumously) in recognition of her outstanding and en-
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1 during contributions to humanity and to women’s ath2 letics, in the United States and the world. 

3 (b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purpose of the 

4 award referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the 

5 Treasury (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall 

6 strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and 

7 inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary. 

8 SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

9 The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

10 bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 2 

11 under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, 

12 and at a price sufficient to cover the costs thereof, includ13 ing labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, overhead ex14 penses, and the cost of the gold medal. 

15 SEC. 4. STATUS AS NATIONAL MEDALS. 

16 The medals struck pursuant to this Act are national 

17 medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United 

18 States Code. 

19 SEC. 5. FUNDING. 

20 (a) AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS.—There is 

21 authorized to be charged against the United States Mint 

22 Public Enterprise Fund an amount not to exceed $30,000 

23 to pay for the cost of the medals authorized by this Act. 

24 (b) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the 

25 sale of duplicate bronze medals under section 3 shall be 
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1 deposited in the United States Mint Public Enterprise 

2 Fund. 

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