Black History Month and The Olympics

In case you don't know we are in the middle of both the Winter Olympics and Black History month here in the USA. In honor of both of these I figure I should spotlight the history of some black Olympians. 

1988

Debi Thomas

• Won the bronze medal in figure skating
• Became the first Black athlete to medal at the Winter Games.
• She remains the only African American woman to win a medal in figure skating.

2002

Vonetta Flowers

• Won the gold medal in two-women blobsleigh,
• Was the first Black athlete to win Winter Olympics gold

Jarome Iginla

• Won gold as part of the Canada ice hockey team
• Was the second Black athlete to win Winter Olympics gold and the first Black male athlete to earn a gold medal

2006

Shani Davis

• One of the most decorated long track speedskaters, with four Olympic medals
• Was the first Black athlete to win gold in an individual competition.

2010/2014

Elana Meyers Taylor

• Was the first black athlete, male or female, to medal as both a brakeman and driver in bobsled after winning bronze at the 2010 Winter Games and silver at the 2014 Winter Games.

2012/2014

Lauryn Williams

• Williams was the first woman to win summer and winter Olympics medals.

2018

Erin Jackson

• Was the first Black woman to be on the U.S. long-track speedskating team, qualifying for the 2018 Winter Olympics after learning to speedskate just four months prior.

Jordan Greenway

• Was the first African American player to compete for the United States in Olympic ice hockey

Simidele Adeagbo

• Made history as a member of Nigeria's first Winter Olympics team, and became the first Nigerian and African woman to compete in skeleton.

Akwasi Frimpong

• Was Ghana's second athlete to ever compete in the Winter Olympics and the first to represent Ghana in skeleton.

Sabrina Simander

• Became the first from Kenya to compete in Alpine skiing

Maame Biney

• Became the youngest skater and first Black woman to make a U.S. Olympic short track speedskating team. and the second-ever African-born athlete to represent the United States in the Winter Olympics in 2018.

2022

Among the Black athletes representing the U.S. in Beijing this month are:

• Maame Biney, competing in her second Olympics as a speedskater.
• Elana Meyers Taylor,  competing in her fourth Olympics as a bobsledder.
• Erin Jackson, U.S. long-track speedskating 
• Hakeem Abdul-Saboor, in the four-man bobsled, 
• Sylvia Hoffman and Kaysha Love, teammates in the two-woman bobsled, 
• Malik Jones, a forward on the sled hockey team in the Paralympics.