A Black Woman Just Won Olympic Speed Skating Gold For The First Time After A Selfless Choice
We're not crying, you're crying!😭
American speedskater Erin Jackson just made history.
Jackson became the first Black woman to win a speedskating medal event at the Winter Olympics. And did we mention that the medal was gold?
This story will melt your heart, so brace yourself.
At a recent World Cup competition, Jackson stumbled and ended up in third place, one spot short of qualifying for Beijing. But then her teammate, Brittany Bowe, gave up her spot in the race so Jackson could go to the Olympics.
"That evening, I said [to Jackson] if it comes down to me, if there's anything I could do to get you on the team, you have my place," said Bowe on Good Morning America.
Bowe made the space and Jackson did the rest, beating out everyone else to win gold in the 500-metre speedskating event. Jackson beat Takagi Miho from Japan, who won second place, by 0.08 seconds.
"I cried immediately, it was just a big release of emotion. A lot of shock, a lot of relief and a lot of happiness. I haven't fully processed everything quite yet, but it just feels amazing," said Jackson in a press conference afterward, as reported by CNN.
This is the first time the U.S. has won an individual medal in the sport since the 2010 Vancouver Games, per The Associated Press.
Jackson joins retired speedskater Shani Davis, who won gold at the Turin Winter Olympics in 2006, as one of only two Black athletes who have ever won a medal in speedskating.
Jackson hopes that her story can be a lesson to others.
"Hopefully it has an effect [...] and we can see more minorities, especially in the USA, getting out and trying some of these winter sports. And I just always hope to be a good example, especially with helping kids see they don’t have to just choose one between schools and sport," said Jackson on the Olympics website.
As for Bowe, she's still competing in other events at the Games, and she was thrilled to celebrate Jackson's victory on Instagram.
"True champions lift each other up," she wrote.
That's friendship!