The 2022 Olympics ended on Sunday, February 20th in Beijing, China. The event brought the usual share of triumph and defeat. While the cloud of Zero Covid policies enacted by the Chinese government and a Russian doping scandal loomed large over the event, Black athletes excelled, nonetheless. Two of the most exciting stories to come out of the competition are Erin Jackson and Elana Meyers Taylor. Some have suggested that this has been a particularly good year for Black women. Jackson and Myer Taylor’s achievements show us that Black women are star achievers all the time and in every season. Both women represent the best in their respective sports and the best the Olympics has to offer.
Erin Jackson became the first Black woman to win a Gold medal in speed skating. Her story is an unlikely one. Her love affair with the skating began at a roller rink in Florida. She is a former roller derby and in-line skater. She competed in top-level races and roller derbies around the world. She also holds an engineering degree from the University of Florida. Jackson transitioned to the ice in 2016. Jackson qualified for the World Games in 2017 and competed in inline speed skating. She qualified to compete in the 500 meters in 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. In November 2021, she won the first 500 meters in the Speedskating World Cup in Poland with two world cups. She became the first African American woman to win in speed skating. During the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics she won the 500m speed skating competition. In doing so she became the first Black woman to medal in speed skating.
In addition to Jackson, Elana Meyers Taylor achieved Olympic glory. Born in Oceanside, California, she was raised in Douglasville, Georgia. She earned her fifth Olympic medal, a Bronze, in the two woman bobsled event. Meyers Taylor had earned medals at previous Olympics in the two woman event. She won silver medals in Pyeongchang in 2018 and Sochi in 2014 and the bronze in Vancouver in 2010. Meyers Taylor faced a challenging road to her latest win. She took off during the 2019-2020 season to have a child, Nico Taylor. She married fellow bobsledder, Nic Taylor in 2014. Meyers Taylor was forced to sit out for a week in isolation following a positive coronavirus test shortly after arriving in Beijing. Undaunted, she pushed through and secured a fifth Olympic medal. Doing so made her one of the most decorated Black women in Olympic history.
Black women continue to play an important role in sport. Jackson and Meyers Taylor represent two of the inspirational aspects of the Olympics. Both athletes want to inspire other women to achieve their goals regardless of the obstacles. Jackson transitioned from the roller rink to ice skating and failed to make the team where she slipped and placed third in the trails. Another teammate gave up her spot on the team so Jackson could compete. Meyers Taylor wants female athletes to know they can come back from pregnancy and childbirth to compete. Inspirational stories from phenomenal women.