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Gov. Kasich dedicates park named for Olympic great, Cleveland native Jesse Owens

Owens was a world record-setting sprinter at Ohio State University and won four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin.
Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Black American sprinter and athlete Jesse (James Cleveland) Owens (1913 - 1980), who won 4 gold medals for running and field events in the 1936 Berlin Olympics.

COLUMBUS (AP) - Ohio's governor has dedicated a new state park and wildlife area named for Olympic great Jesse Owens.

Two of Owens' daughters accompanied Gov. John Kasich during Tuesday's dedication ceremony in Columbus at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.

The Republican governor said Tuesday that achievements of "heroes" such as Owens should be preserved to inspire others to "overcome challenges and accomplish their very best."

Owens was a world record-setting sprinter at Ohio State University and won four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin.

The park was created after Ohio's Department of Natural Resources struck a deal with American Electric Power to buy a large portion of a 60,000-acre parcel owned by the company.

The land spans parts of Guernsey, Morgan, Muskingum and Noble counties in eastern Ohio.

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