Decorated Black athletes broke down barriers in the sports world

Wilma Rudolph, far right, won the 4x100-meter relay at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome. She also won the 100-meter and 200-meter dash events. Photo courtesy of GPA Photo Archive via Flickr.

By Genevieve Zahner ’26

Staff Writer

Content warning: This article mentions racism. 

Black athletes were prohibited from participating in professional sports for much of history, but prominent figures such as Debi Thomas and Wilma Rudolph broke down walls and became some of the most decorated athletes. Many eyes now fall upon figures like Simone Biles and Serena Williams when thinking about prolific Black athletes, but there were many other trailblazers before them who paved the way for the future of sports. 

1.  Althea Gibson

Althea Gibson was the first Black tennis player to compete at the U.S. National Tennis Championship in 1950, but that was only the beginning of her success. She went on to win the French Open in 1956, followed by Wimbledon in 1957 and the U.S. Open in 1958, becoming the first Black champion of such events. Gibson was raised in Harlem, New York, and grew up loving sports, particularly ping-pong. She won a local tournament hosted by the American Tennis Association just a single year after playing tennis for the first time. She went on to win the same tournament twice more in 1944 and 1945, and following one loss, she won 10 straight championship titles from 1947-1956. Gibson died on Sept. 28, 2003, of respiratory failure. 

2. Willie O’Ree

Willie O’Ree was the first Black player in the National Hockey League, playing for the Boston Bruins starting in 1958. He grew up in Canada in one of two Black families in his town of Fredericton, New Brunswick. He first played organized hockey at age five with his brother, who taught him how to body check. In 1956, O’Ree started playing for the Quebec Aces, a team with a strong connection to the NHL and a history of integration. He played with the Aces until 1958, when he was called up from the Aces to play for the Bruins, playing his first NHL game on Jan. 18 of that year and making history in the league. O’Ree experienced racial taunts from spectators and players alike, including an incident in which spectators threw cotton balls and a black cat onto the ice. Despite these obstacles, O’Ree became an ambassador for the NHL Diversity program, traveling to boost grassroots hockey programs, and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2018. 

3. Wilma Rudolph

Wilma Rudolph was the first American woman to win three gold medals at a single Olympics at Rome’s 1960 Summer Olympics. Rudolph participated in track and field and won her medals in the 100- and 200-meter dash, as well as the 4x100-meter relay. Rudolph also won a bronze medal in the 1956 Olympics for the 4x100-meter relay. A survivor of childhood polio, Rudolph was told she would never walk again, let alone run. Rudolph defied these odds and started playing basketball in middle school, for which she was nominated as an All-American athlete in high school. After a meeting with a college coach, she switched to track and field. At the 1960 Olympic Games, her performance earned her the nickname “the fastest woman in the world” after becoming the first American woman to win three gold medals. When coming home, she refused to participate in the homecoming parade if it was not integrated, and she commonly used her fame as a means to bring attention to social issues. Rudolph died of a brain tumor on Nov. 12, 1994.

 4.  Ernie Davis

Ernie Davis was the first Black football player to earn the Heisman Trophy. Recruited by many institutions to play collegiate football, Davis decided to play for Syracuse University as a running back. While on the team, Davis led the Orangemen to an undefeated season and a national title in his sophomore year. Davis had two touchdowns in the 1960 Cotton Bowl versus the University of Texas, which led him to be the Cotton Bowl’s Most Valuable Player. He was an All-American athlete in his junior and senior years and was given the Heisman Trophy in 1961. Davis was the first overall draft pick in the 1962 National Football Draft and was selected by the Washington Commanders. However, after refusing to play for the racist owner of the team, Davis was traded to the Cleveland Browns. Davis was never able to play a game for the Browns, as he was diagnosed with leukemia just prior to the 1962 College All-Star game. Davis died at age 23 of leukemia. 

5.  Debi Thomas

Debi Thomas was the first and only Black figure skating Olympic champion and the first Black athlete to win a medal at the Winter Olympics in 1988. The first time Thomas was introduced to skating was when her mother took her to an ice show, and by the age of nine years old, she was skating competitively and conquering her competitions. Thomas won the national and world figure skating championships during her freshman year at Stanford University and was recognized as the 1986 Athlete of the Year by World Wide Sports. After the 1988 Olympics, in which she took the bronze medal in the short program and fifth in the long program, Thomas skated professionally. During this time, she claimed three professional world titles and performed with Stars on Ice. After four years, Thomas stopped skating to attend medical school at Northwestern University in 1997. Thomas is now a practicing orthopedic surgeon in Indiana.

COVID cases grow in the Olympic Village as competitions carry on

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

By Gigi Picard ’22

Sports Editor

After a year-long wait, the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games have officially kicked off. Due to the rise of COVID-19 cases in Japan that led to a state of emergency, the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games are not allowing spectators. Now, the athletes are paying the price — and not just from a lack of fans to cheer them on. The athletes themselves are testing positive for the coronavirus, resulting in either self-isolation from other athletes or disqualification from the Olympics altogether. CNBC reported that two days before the opening ceremony of the games, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the world is on the verge of another wave of the pandemic.

After they arrived at the Olympic Village, three members from South Africa’s football team tested positive for COVID-19. CNN reported the three as football players Thabiso Monyane and Kamohelo Mahlatsi and video analyst Mario Masha. As a result, the entire South African Olympic team went into quarantine.

The most recent example of an athlete testing positive for COVID-19 was USA pole vaulter Sam Kendricks. According to ESPN, he took home a bronze medal in the 2016 Olympics and gold at the past two world championships, and holds the American record for the highest jump at 19 feet and 10.5 inches. Kendricks will not be able to compete in the Olympics, though some of his teammates are still permitted to. He reportedly showed no symptoms and is currently isolating at a hotel. Several Australian track and field athletes were briefly told to isolate as well, as they were in contact with Kendricks. 

The Guardian reported the number of COVID-19 cases in the Olympic Village has hit 198. 

The Games themselves will feature 33 sports, with baseball, softball, skateboarding, karate, sports climbing and surfing added to the program. It began July 23, 2021 with the televised opening ceremony. One day before the ceremony took place, the creative director of the opening ceremony, Kentaro Kobayashi, was fired. CBS News reported that a video of a 1998 comedy routine he performed resurfaced, in which he seemed to “joke about the Holocaust.” The Associated Press shared a statement by Olympic Organizing Committee President Seiko Hashimoto. “We found out that Mr. Kobayashi, in his own performance, has used a phrase ridiculing a historical tragedy. We deeply apologize for causing such a development the day before the opening ceremony and for causing troubles and concerns to many involved parties as well as the people in Tokyo and the rest of the country," Hashimoto said. 

The televised event was hosted by sportscaster Mike Tirico and co-anchor of Today Savannah Guthrie. According to NBC Sports Group, Tirico said the Opening Ceremony “is a memorable part of any Olympic Games, but perhaps it has never carried more meaning given the circumstances the world has been facing.” Guthrie also offered insight, saying, “[People] want to watch that moment when someone’s life changes before your eyes. I’m excited. I think people are going to really catch the fever. There is nothing like the Olympics.”

The ceremony lasted approximately four hours. NBC Sports reported drones flying over the sky during the ceremony to create an image of the Earth, with fireworks displayed as well. The ceremony also featured tap dancers dressed as carpenters, who danced as other performers assembled Olympic rings out of wood from Japanese trees. The seeds of the trees were planted by athletes of various countries who participated in the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games.

Additionally, athletes from 205 countries, including the Refugee Olympic Team, came out in Japanese alphabetical order, each with at least one flag bearer. The International Olympic Committee insisted on both a male and female flag bearer per country to promote gender equality; however, not all nations complied, with some having a sole male or female flag bearer. The final three teams were Japan, France and the United States, as they are either future host countries or the current host country. 

The finale of the ceremony consisted of a torch relay, concluding with Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka lighting the Olympic cauldron. 

Several major Olympic stories have come from women’s sports in judo, swimming and gymnastics. 

Japanese brother and sister judokas became the first siblings to win gold on the same day, according to Today. Uta Abe defeated her opponent in the women’s 52-kilogram category. “This was a dream for us,” Uta told reporters, when asked about achieving simultaneous gold medals with her brother. “It makes me believe dream comes true as long as I try to achieve it.” Her brother, Hifumi, won gold in the men’s 66-kilogram category, hours after Uta. 

Meanwhile, in the pool, Lydia Jacoby made headlines at NBC News as the first American from Alaska to swim in the Olympic Games. Jacoby took home gold in the 100-meter breaststroke, dethroning fellow American Lilly King, who won bronze. The Olympic pool is 50 meters, but since there is only one 50-meter pool in Alaska, Jacoby is used to training in short course yards. Still, that didn’t stop her from dominating at the Olympic scale. “I was definitely racing for a medal,” Jacoby said. “I knew I had it in me. I wasn’t really expecting a gold medal, so when I looked up and saw the scoreboard, it was insane.”

Even with major successes in the pool, the main story of this week came from women’s gymnastics. Partway through the team finals, U.S. gold medal favorite Simone Biles pulled out of the competition after the vault event, due to a medical issue she later revealed was tied to her mental health. “Warmup in the back went a little bit better, but then once I came out here, I was like, no, mental is not there, so I just need to let the girls do it and focus on myself,” Biles said.

Biles scored a 13.766 out of a possible 15.8 points during the vault because of an unexpected switch in her routine. The four-time Olympic gold medalist competed in Team USA's first rotation, bailing out of her Amanar and only completing a 1.5 twist on a 2.5-twisting Yurchenko, then taking a big stumble on the landing. Her teammates knew immediately that something was wrong when Biles seemed to lose her place in the air during the vault. In the qualifying rounds, Biles had a score of 15.183. Since her withdrawal, Biles has revealed on social media that she is struggling with a phenomenon gymnasts call “the twisties” — a dangerous kind of mid-air vertigo that can be extremely hard to shake. Last Friday, Biles said she “literally can not tell up from down.” 

Without Biles, the United States women’s team won the silver medal. Biles hoped to continue competing in the individual events, which includes the individual all-around and individual apparatus events — floor exercise, beam, vault and uneven bars. CNBC reported Biles also pulled out of the individual all-around, an event in which she won gold at the 2016 Rio Games. 

“[Biles] will continue to be evaluated daily to determine whether or not to participate in next week’s individual event finals,” USA Gymnastics commented. “We wholeheartedly support [Biles]’ decision and applaud her bravery in prioritizing her well-being. Her courage shows, yet again, why she is a role model for so many.” Her teammate Jade Carey took her place in the all-around final, alongside Suni Lee for Team USA. Carey had originally placed ninth in the qualifying rounds.

In an interview with Hoda Kotb on the Today show, Biles said, “Physically, I feel good. I’m in shape. Emotionally, it varies on the time and moment. Coming to the Olympics and being head star isn’t an easy feat.” 

During an interview with Tirico, retired Olympic USA swimmer Michael Phelps discussed how he can relate to Biles. “We carry a lot of things, a lot of weight on our shoulders. And it’s challenging, especially when we have the lights on us and all of these expectations that are being thrown on top of us,” Phelps said. 

Lee, the first Hmong American to participate in the Olympic Games, took gold in the individual all-around. Biles shared a video of Lee dancing with the medal on her Instagram with text saying: “THE QUEEN HAS ARRIVED.” 

According to the latest available updates from NBC Olympics, Biles has pulled out of the vault, floor and uneven bar individual event finals. Her teammate MyKayla Skinner will take her place in the vault finals after originally placing fourth in the qualifying rounds. In response to her choice, USA Gymnastics stated, “We remain in awe of Simone, who continues to handle this situation with courage and grace, and all of the athletes who have stepped up during these unexpected circumstances.”

Meanwhile, across other sports Olympic and world records continue to be shattered by male and female athletes alike. For example, in men’s sports, 27-year-old Shi Zhiyong of China lifted 364 kilograms in weightlifting, breaking his own world record and earning him gold in back-to-back Olympics. Then, in men’s swimming, the United States’ Caeleb Dressel and Australia’s Izaac Stubblety-Cook were two of several swimmers who set Olympic records and won individual gold medals. In women’s swimming, Zhang Yufei of China won an individual gold medal and set an Olympic record time, as well as helping China set a world record time in the women’s 4 x 200 freestyle relay event. 

The overall medal count has the United States in first place, China in second place and the Russian Olympic Committee in third. 

There’s less than a week left of the 2020 Olympic Games. To track the sports that are beginning this week, refer to the table.

The summer paralympic games will begin on Aug. 24 and end on Sep. 5, 2021.

Kelley O’Hara’s ‘Just Women’s Sports’ Podcast Tells Stories of Untold Success

Pictured above: Kelley O'Hara on the soccer field. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.

By Gigi Picard ‘22

Sports Editor

Off the field, Kelley O’Hara, a two-time FIFA Women’s World Cup Champion, Olympic Gold medalist and defender for the Utah Royals FC in the National Women’s Soccer League, is the host of the “Just Women’s Sports” podcast. The podcast was founded by Haley Rosen and premiered last July. It aims to raise awareness of women’s untold success stories in the sports world. At its debut, the podcast hit No. 1 in sports podcasts, and it currently has over 300,000 subscribers.

The first episode featured O’Hara’s U.S. women’s national soccer teammate Alex Morgan, who had just given birth. The other guests on the first season included U.S. snowboarder Chloe Kim and WNBA star Breanna Stewart. 

The second season of the podcast premiered on Oct. 27, 2020. In the first episode, O’Hara interviewed U.S. women’s track and field star Allyson Felix. Carli Lloyd and Mallory Pugh, O’Hara’s national teammates, have also been featured. 

The podcast is newly sponsored by Heineken, a Dutch brewing company. Senior Director of Media and Creative Studio at Heineken USA Frank Amorese said in a press release, “As a brand committed to uniting fans over the love of the game — on and off the field — and with only 4 percent of sports coverage dedicated to women’s sports, Heineken is proud to be a sponsor of JWS and supports soccer star Kelley O’Hara’s vision to create more visibility for women’s sports.” My Valley News reported that Heineken’s sponsorship will “redefine visibility for women’s sports and empower female athletes to tell their own stories.” 

One of the podcast’s goals is to tell the stories of women in sports with “no more pink and glitter.” “Just Women’s Sports” continues to tell the success stories of women every Tuesday with a new sponsor, hoping to redefine women’s sports on their platform.