When faced with a challenge, she takes it on one glide at a time. Learn more about the inspiration who is Tenley Emma Albright.
Imagine becoming the first American woman to win the figure skating world championships. Now, imagine also winning an Olympic gold medal. Lastly, add in the fact that you are a surgeon. This is the reality of Massachusetts native, Tenley Emma Albright.
Growing up in Newton Centre, Massachusetts, Tenley Emma Albright began skating at six years old, after receiving skates for Christmas one year. Born to artist Ein Albright and surgeon Hollis Albright, she had ambition flowing through her veins. Albright began training a couple of years later with Mr. Willie Frick. Frick was a renowned coach and teacher; however, he did not teach in the summer months. Albright trained with Eugene Turner during those months.
Unfortunately, at age 10, Tenley Albright began feeling the symptoms of polio. At Haynes Memorial in Allston, Massachusetts, she stayed as a polio patient. Her right leg, neck and back were affected, but luckily not paralyzed. Once she was allowed to go home, the doctors encouraged her to do something active that she enjoyed. This, of course, was skating. At the time, no one understood polio and the way it spread, so an individual sport was ideal.
She told us about her first time back at the rink in her biographical website, “I headed to the right side because there weren’t people over there. I literally stood next to the barrier and put my hands on it and crossed them one over the next over the next, so slowly, inching along. And I was so happy doing that.”
Only five months after her release from the hospital, she strengthened herself through ice skating. So much so that she competed and won the title of New England Juvenile Champion. In 1951, Albright won New England’s and Eastern pairs with her partner Dudley Richards. From 1952 to 1956, she continued to win national championship titles. Additionally, she won these competitions: (1952) Olympic silver, (1953) North Americans and Worlds; (1955) North Americans and Worlds; (1956) Olympic gold.
Her 1956 Olympic performance was after a leg injury during warm ups, where her skate gashed her landing leg. Though her father took care of the wound, she was in extreme pain. Regardless, she skated incredibly, winning gold!
After her skating career, Tenley Albright studied at Radcliffe College, followed by Harvard University. Albright became a surgeon, following in her father’s footsteps. In 2005, she founded MIT Collaborative Initiatives. When on the National Institutes of Health National Library of Medicine’s Board of Regents, Albright’s interest was focused on new technologies and the advancement of medical training, surgery and more. She has also received the Research!America Advocacy Award, and in 2011, she received the White House Fellows Valenti Award and eight honorary degrees from universities and colleges.
Tenley Emma Albright proves that even through physical challenges, you can be who you want to be. An ice skater, a surgeon, a teacher and an inspiration, all wrapped in one incredible woman!