Erin Jackson brings home gold, first Black woman to win speed skating medal at the Winter Olympics

[Nevilledog]

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NBC News
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Erin Jackson, 29-year-old Florida native and lifelong rollerblader, becomes the first Black woman to win Team USA a gold medal in speed skating.

nbcnews.com
Erin Jackson brings home gold, first Black woman to win speed skating medal at the Winter Olympics
The 29-year-old Floridian finished her lap in a mere 37.04 seconds, earning Team USA's first gold in the women’s 500-meter speed skating race in decades.
11:33 AM · Feb 13, 2022

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/olympics/erin-jackson-brings-home-gold-first-black-woman-win-speed-skating-meda-rcna16042?cid=sm_npd_nn_tw_ma

A 29-year-old Florida native and lifelong rollerblader became the first Black woman to win Team USA a gold medal in speed skating Sunday.

Erin Jackson earned her first Olympic medal in the women’s 500- meter speed skating race at the Beijing Games, an event Team USA has not won since 1994. Jackson finished her lap in a mere 37.04 seconds.

It may seem unlikely that a skater who spent her life on rollerblades would be an Olympian on the ice, but Jackson quickly became a gold medal favorite. She made her Olympic debut four years ago in Pyeongchang, having switched to ice skating roughly a year earlier.

She was the first Black woman to make it on to Team USA as a speed skater.

Despite being ranked No. 1 in the world, Jackson's return to the Olympics was not guaranteed. She stumbled during the Olympic trials, putting a hiccup in her chase for gold.

*snip*


This is an amazing story.

[Deuce]

1. Congratulations to her!

[LetMyPeopleVote]

2. The American lady who gave up her spot is truly a great human being

[Nevilledog]

3. Right?

[bdamomma]

4. That was

very human of her, that's what is missing nowadays compassion and decency. Just being plain nice.