Victoria Manalo-Draves, Olympic Diver
Victoria Manalo-Draves was a member of the US Olympic team that competed in London in 1948. She was the first Filipino woman to represent the United States, and the first woman in Olympic history to win gold medals in both springboard diving and platform diving.
Life magazine named her one of the top two American athletes of the London Olympics.
Victoria Manalo was born in San Francisco in 1924 along with a fraternal twin. Her mother was an Englishwoman and her father Teofilo was a Philippine-born musician who would constantly remind her that their last name "Manalo" meant "to win" in Tagalog.
Her husband was Lyle Draves, whom she met in 1944 and became one of her diving coaches. They were married in 1946 and had four sons.
Vicki Manalo-Draves was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1969.
Birth name: Victoria Manalo
Known as: Vicki Draves
Birthday: December 31, 1924
Birthplace: San Francisco, California, USA
Accomplishment: the first woman in Olympic history to win gold medals in both springboard diving and platform diving.
Distinction: the first Filipina-American athlete to compete in the Olympics
Most recent honor: In October 2006, a two-acre park in San Francisco was named Victoria Manalo Draves Park in her honor. It is located in SOMA (South of Market), on Folsom Street between 6th and 7th Streets.