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Sports are beloved throughout the world. We often forget however, of the challenges that many have faced throughout the years in order to break down barriers for future generations. We would like to celebrate some athletes from yesteryear and yesterday who have really made a difference.
Sports are beloved throughout the world. We often forget however, of the challenges that many have faced throughout the years in order to break down barriers for future generations. We would like to celebrate some athletes from yesteryear and yesterday who have really made a difference.
Jackie Robinson
First African American player in Major League Baseball
Vonetta Flowers
First Black athlete to achieve a gold medal at the Winter Olympics
Texas Western
1966 - First all-black starting lineup to win a National Championship in college basketball
Willie O'Ree
1958 - First Black player in the National Hockey League
Victoria Manalo Draves
1948 - First Asian American Olympic Champion (Diving)
Wataru "Wat" Misaka
First non-white and first player of Asian descent in the Basketball Association of America, which later became the NBA
Larry Kwong
Broke the NHL's color barrier in 1947
Althea Gibson
First Black player to compete and win at Wimbledon
Manny Malhotra
Only player of Indian origin in the NHL
Wilma Rudolph
Was born premature with infant paralysis caused by polio
Won three Olympic gold medals in 1960
Robert Kelly Slater
Syrian - Lebanese ancestry
Won 11 pro surfing world championships
Ted Williams
Arguably, one of the best hitters in baseball history
19 time all star
Mother was Mexican-American
Roberto Clemente
First Latin American player inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame
Doug Flutie
Heisman trophy winning quarterback in 1984
Known famously for "the pass"
Paternal grandparents Lebanese immigrants
Satnam Singh
First Indian-born NBA player
Jim Plunkett
Only Latino to win the Heisman Trophy
Charlie Sifford
First African American represented in the World Golf Hall of Fame
Marshall Taylor
First African American to win a world championship
In 1899, he won the one-mile cycling championship
Ibtihaj Muhammad
First US athlete to wear a hijab during the Olympics
Became an ambassador in the US Dept of State for Empowering women and girls through sport
Yusra Mardini
Syrian refugee and Olympic swimmer
Appointed the youngest UNHCR Goodwill ambassador ever
Simone Biles
First African American to win the Olympic all-around title in gymnastics
Ramla Ali
War refugee from Somalia
Won the 2016 England Boxing Elite National Championship
Chris Long
NFL Defensive End
Founder of the Waterboys Organization which helps provide sustainable access to drinking water in vulnerable places
Joe Gibbs
Three time NFL Super Bowl Champion coach with the Washington
Founded Youth for Tomorrow, a safe environment for at-risk youth who are the victims of abandonment and abuse
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