Dale City in Prince William County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Benita Fitzgerald Drive

Photographed By Kevin White, September 6, 2007

1. Benita Fitzgerald Drive Marker

Inscription. Named in honor of Benita Fitzgerald, Olympic Gold Medalist – 100 Meter Hurdles, XXIII Olympiad – 1984 • Pan American Games Champion – 1983 • U.S. National Champion – 1983 and 1986.

Benita was born in Warrenton, Virginia on July 6, 1961 and attended Prince William County schools until her graduation from Garfield High School in 1979. She attended the First Mount Zion Baptist Church, was a member of the Dalelites, the Dale City Lassie League, the Garfield Symphonic Track Team, Symphonic Band, and the National Honor Society. Benita is a 1984 graduate of University of Tennessee with a degree in industrial engineering and 15 All-America titles. She is an inductee in the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame and the Virginia High School League Hall of Fame. Benita was named “Sportswomen of the 20th Century” by the Potomac News. Her parents, Rodger and Fannie Fitzgerald, are long-standing Prince William County residents.

Erected 1987 by Board of County Supervisors: Edwin C. King, Chairman, Dumfries; Joseph D. Reading, Vice Chairman, Brentsville; Guy A. Guiffre, Gainesville; John D. Jenkins, Neabsco; Donald Kidwell, Woodbridge; G. Richard Pfitzner, Coles; Kathleen K. Seefeldt, Occoquan. (Marker Number 22.)

Topics and series. This historical

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marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Fraternal or Sororal Organizations • Sports • Women. In addition, it is included in the Virginia, Prince William County Historical Commission series list. A significant historical month for this entry is July 1977.

Location. 38° 37.667′ N, 77° 18.833′ W. Marker is in Dale City, Virginia, in Prince William County. Marker is on Benita Fitzgerald Drive, 0.1 miles south of Dale Boulevard, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Woodbridge VA 22193, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. The Courageous Four (approx. 0.8 miles away); New School Baptist Church (approx. 0.9 miles away); Neabsco Mills Ironworks (approx. one mile away); Dumfries Rest Area (approx. one mile away); Like to Eat? (approx. 1.1 miles away); Freedom High School Sundial Memorial (approx. 1.4 miles away); Old Telegraph Road (approx. 1½ miles away); Potomac Path (approx. 1.7 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Dale City.

Regarding Benita Fitzgerald Drive.

Benita Fitzgerald Drive image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Kevin White, September 6, 2007

2. Benita Fitzgerald Drive

Picture taken from the East side of Benita Fitzgerald Drive, looking North toward Dale Blvd.

Benita Fitzgerald Mosley enjoyed a successful career as a world-class athlete. She won a gold medal in the 100-meter hurdles in the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, CA.; was a member of the 1980 and 1984 U. S. Olympic Teams and an Alternate on the 1988 U. S. Olympic Team. She is the second American, after Babe Didrickson, and the first African-American woman to win an Olympic gold medal in the 100-meter hurdles. She was also a gold medalist in the 1983 Pan American Games, an eight-time national champion, and a 15-time All-American.

As a result of her many accomplishments, Benita was named “Sportswoman of the Century” by The Potomac News, a newspaper that covers the northern Virginia area. She was also named by Sports Illustrated as the “Top Female Sports Figure of the Century from Virginia”. She is an inductee into both the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame and the Virginia High School Hall of Fame.

In 1996, Benita was honored as one of eight U.S. Olympians to carry the Olympic Flag into the stadium during the Opening Ceremonies of the Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta. Also in 1996, the U.S. Sports Academy named her its 1996 Distinguished Service Award winner. Named “Hurdler of the Decade” for the 1980s by Track and Field News, she was honored with a street named Benita Fitzgerald Drive in her hometown of Dale City, VA in 1987.

Benita Fitzgerald Mosley image. Click for full size.

Photographed By W I C T

3. Benita Fitzgerald Mosley

Picture is from the Women in Cable Telecommunications (WICT) website (please see links).

Benita is a 1984 graduate of the University of Tennessee (UT) in Industrial Engineering, and was inducted as a charter member of the UT Lady Vols Hall of Fame in 2001. She is also a member of the Penn Relays Hall of Fame.

Benita’s professional experience also includes an engineering career that began in 1985 and spanned six years in the design and development of software and hardware systems for Navy, Army, and Air Force defense contractors. In 1991, she began her career in sports marketing and administration as a Regional Director for Special Olympics International in Washington, DC. Benita was Program Director for the marketing division of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games from 1993-1995.

She is currently serving as President and CEO of Women in Cable Telecommunications (WICT), a 5,000-member nonprofit association for women in the rapidly converging telecommunications industries. In 2004, Television Week Magazine named her Cable Television Executive of the Year.

More information about Benita Fitzgerald Mosley is available at the following link.

Credits. This page was last revised on December 26, 2019. It was originally submitted on September 6, 2007, by Kevin W. of Stafford, Virginia. This page has been viewed 3,883 times since then and 89 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on September 6, 2007, by Kevin W. of Stafford, Virginia. • J. J. Prats was the editor who published this page.