By Jovonne Ledet
(Source: Black Information Network)
A star-studded group of Black athletes has been inducted into the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame.
On Saturday (July 12), tennis star Serena Williams, decorated gymnast Gabby Douglas, and track athlete Allyson Felix were among the eight Olympic and Paralympic athletes inducted into the Hall of Fame this year, per Olympics.com.
“The class is so incredible — Serena [Williams], Gabby [Douglas] and Kerri [Walsh Jennings], Anita DeFrantz — these legendary people that have provided so much inspiration to me, and so just to be with them and in their company is incredible, it’s humbling,” Felix told Good Morning America ahead of Saturday’s induction ceremony in Colorado Springs. “I’ve reflected on my journey in my career, and I feel just very blessed to be here.”
Douglass, the first Black woman to win Olympic all-around gold in gymnastics, said she “never imagined” being inducted into the Hall of Fame when she first started her career as a gymnast.
The class of 2025 also included two legends, rower Anita DeFrantz and indoor volleyball star Flo Hyman, who helped lead the U.S. women’s volleyball team to a silver medal at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, making her the first Black American to medal in Olympic volleyball.
DeFrantz, 72, won bronze at the 1976 Olympic Games in rowing before making history as the first African American woman elected to the International Olympic Committee. Current IOC President Kirsty Coventry, who took office last month, made a surprise appearance at the ceremony to honor DeFrantz’s induction into the Hall of Fame.
“It’s just been quadruple-ly – if that’s a word – enhanced by the President of the IOC. I cannot believe she is here. It’s just wonderful,” DeFrantz said.
Other members in the class of 2025 included sled hockey’s Steve Cash, Paralympic star Susan Hagel, basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski, Nike founder Phil Knight, alpine skier Bode Miller, para track and field star Marla Runyan, the 2010 Four-man Bobsled Team, and the 2004 Women’s Wheelchair Basketball Team.
