By: Richard L. Smith
Best of New Jersey online journal writer Mr. Joseph Lombardi said Ms. Joetta Clark was born in East Orange, NJ, but she subsequently grew up in Newark.
As a child growing up in Newark, Lombardi said Clark experienced riots and some other difficulties in her hometown but, through such adversity, forged a will to succeed.
Ms. Clark became a track & field champion, running for nearly 25 consecutive years and never missing an indoor or outdoor season. She typically raced in the 800 meters and 1,500-meter competitions and became a 4-time Olympian, representing the United States of America in 1988, 1992, 1996, and 2000 Olympic games, according to the 1996 report written by Lombardi.
"In 1996, Clark Diggs was chosen as a Sports Illustrated Hometown Hero. In 1997, the Governor appointed Clark Diggs as one of the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority commissioners.
In 2002, she established the Joetta Clark Diggs Sports Foundation "to promote involvement with physical activities for girls and boys in grades K-12."
The foundation promotes good health and positive work ethics and assists in aiding a myriad of children every day," according to Joseph Lombardi.
Ms. Clark Diggs attended the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, where she won nine collegiate athletic titles.
Today, we close our 28 days of Black history in NJ with a final salute to Ms. Diggs and all who have supported our platform's ability to embrace and pay tribute to the accomplishments of African Americans past and present in our beautiful state.
INFORMATION & IMAGE CREDIT: Best of NJ online journal, Writer Mr. Joseph Lombardi's 2016 article
SPONSORS: Metro Media Institute of Harrison, Nino's Pizza, Bergen Street Harrison, NJ, and William Paterson University