Katharin Dewey

Katharin “Kay” Dewey Martin (November 17, 1917 – December 18, 1997) was an American bobsledder.

Early life

She was the daughter of Godfrey Dewey, president of the Lake Placid Organizing Committee and a winter sports facility designer.

Career

At age 24 Dewey piloted a bobsleigh alongside male brakemen and won the 1940 US Championships. Following that the United States Bobsled and Skeleton Federation issued a statement saying "Bobsledding, since its inception a stronghold of male sport, bowed Monday to femininity" and subsequently banned women from competing. The federation later inducted her into the hall of fame in 2014 “for paving the way for women to compete in the sport".[1][2]

She retired from the sport to become head nurse of the urology department at St. Luke's Hospital.[3]

References

  1. ^ "For today's International Women's Day we proudly present: some of our pioneers and role models in women's bobsleigh". International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF). Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  2. ^ "Lake Placid artifacts celebrate sliding sports heroes". Lake Placid News. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  3. ^ "WOMAN BOBSLEDDER TURNS TO NURSING; Katharin Dewey, a 'Grounded' Champion, Has No Regrets". New York Times. 15 November 1941. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.