Above, Beth Heiden in 1979. Photo licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Netherlands.
Elizabeth Lee "Beth" Heiden Reid - American athlete who excelled in speed skating, cross-country skiing and bicycle racing; born Elizabeth Lee Heiden on June 14, 1958 in Madison, Wisconsin. Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame.
Beth's brother, Eric Heiden, was a five-time gold-medalist speedskater at the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympics
Heiden grew up in Shorewood Hills, Wisconsin (a neighborhood in Madison just west of the city center). In her first year at Madison West high school, Heiden was a tennis and soccer player.
That same year, 1975, she ran a national record in the mile for her age and ran in states for both the 800 and the mile.
Heiden attended her first Olympics in 1976, at the age of 17. In 1978 and 1979 Heiden won the Junior Championship. In 1979, Heiden also won the World Allround Speed Skating Championships,
the second female American to do so since 1936. Heiden won a bronze medal in the 3,000 meters at the 1980 Winter Olympics
in Lake Placid, skating on an ankle injury that had bothered her for some time.
Heiden was inducted in the National Speedskating Hall of Fame in 1989, the same day as her brother Eric.
Heiden was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1990.
In their hometown Shorewood Hills, Wisconsin (a neighborhood in Madison just west of the city center), Beth and her brother Eric were the driving forces behind the creation of the Heiden Haus, a small outpost where local children can warm up after skating or playing hockey on the ice rink.
For more information on Beth Heiden , visit Wikipedia.
Buy the Time Magazine with Beth and Eric Heiden on the cover at Amazon. (Click on image below to browse.)
Beth Heiden
Olympic Speed Skater, Cross Country Skier, Cyclist.
Above: Beth Heiden in 1979. Photo licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Netherlands.
Above: Beth Heiden and her brother, Eric Heiden, February 24, 1977. Photo licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Netherlands.
Buy the above Time magazine cover