These Tokyo Olympics Saw Black Female Atheletes Trailblaze as Mental and Maternal Health Advocates for All Women

Black female athletes receive some of the harshest criticism when they speak out about health, fairness and equity, yet the eventual changes that come from their willingness to use their platform for advocacy usually benefit ALL women.

Another Olympics came to a close this week and as usual, the stories beyond the games and matches took audiencs on a full emotional swing. We followed stories of triumph, perserverance and endurance. We learned along the way and we saw old policies and status quo shift in a positive direction.

We can thank the bravery of women, some who many consider the G.O.A.T. (greatest of all time) in their sports for the new momentum.

I’m talking about all the ways that mental and physical wellness and well-being took center stage duirng the Tokyo Japan 2020 games, delayed to the year 2021 because of the pandemic.

Think about the new conversations about mental health that circulated in general and social media after the most decorated gymnast in history Simone Biles pulled out of the team…