BHS Day 3: Wendell Scott

Hi! Each Sunday this month is reserved for our Sports Spotlight, where a prominent Black athlete is featured in an array of sports. I originally picked Sports for the Sunday spot because of the Super Bowl, then completely forgot to put a football player on this year's lineup. lol I didn't realize it until after the lineup was completed and I was looking back over the sports I chose. Since said lineup was already inked in, I left it alone. What's worse, I had a football player on my list of potentials for the lineup and rolled it over to next year. I completely forgot about Super Bowl Sunday for a minute. Keep in mind, Super Bowl is the MAIN reason I put Sports on Sundays. #dumbass I guess that's what happens when your team decides to knock itself out of even wildcard contendership. Anyway, even though football should have been the sport du jour, today's entrant was in uncharted territory throughout most of his fast paced career. 

Source

Name: Wendell Scott, 1921-1990 Profession: NASCAR driver Why is the Spotlight on him today? For being the first Black racecar driver to break into NASCAR at a racially segregated time and win a Cup race Notables and accolades: --Was the first and only Black driver on an all-white Grand National (later renamed NASCAR) Tour --Raced in a total of nearly 500 Grand National Races --Was postumously inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2015 --Was the first Black racecar driver to win a race in what is now called the Sprint Cup series but due to rampant racism haunting him throughout most of his career, was not initially given the win --Placed in the top 10 in over 100 of his races  --Was the first Black person to drive in an official stock car race
--Was able to train for his driving career by running illegal alcohol
--Was inducted into the National Black Athletic Hall of Fame in 1977
--Won the pole during a smaller race that set the dirt track record for all half-mile tracks
--Started 54 races in one calendar year
--Was posthumously honored by his town with a street named after him and a historical marker with a listing of his accomplishments
--Despite being actively campaigned against by industry members throughout his career, was able to win over top drivers and promoters to become a respected member of the racing community
Further reading links: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5


Quotes of the Day: 
"When it's too tough for everyone else, it's just right for me."
"Everybody in that place knew I had won the race, but the promoters and the NASCAR officials didn't want me out there kissing beauty queens or accepting any awards."
--Wendell Scott