Barbara Ann Mueller

About

Retired track and field athlete famous for representing the United States at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, where she ran the 80-meter hurdles. She won the 50-yard hurdles event at the 1954 National Indoor Championship and was also declared the winner of the US National Championships pentathlon event in both 1955 and 1956. The last major event in which she competed was the 1959 Pan American Games.

Before Fame

As a child, she attended St. Benedict Catholic Grammar School, which did not offer physical education while she was a student. It wasn't until she started to attend Alvernia Catholic High School that she began to take notice of her athletic ability and drive. The high school offered very little physical education opportunities or activities, despite the apparent desire by students to play basketball and other sports. This inspired her to, following her professional athletic career, become a physical education teacher at St. Benedict High School, a position she held for 43 years. 

Trivia

She tied the record of 12 seconds at her first major hurdle event, which was the 80-meter hurdles at the Texas Outdoor Nationals in 1953. Because that specific event has since been eliminated by the competition, her record will always remain intact.

Family Life

She has a sister, a niece, and a nephew. After living in the same house in Chicago's Ravenswood neighborhood for more than 8 decades, she relocated to the town of Oak Lawn in 2019 to be closer to them. 

Associated With

She was the winner of the US National Championship women's 100-meter hurdle event in 1955. Other winners of the event in later years include Kendra Harrison and Brianna Rollins.