Today, we get to be a part of witnessing and celebrating Black history being made, and I am so here for it! Erin Jackson of the United States has just become the first Black woman to win an Olympic gold medal in speedskating!

Also, I found so many fierce, beautiful and badass pictures of her in Beijing, I’m just going to intersperse them throughout this news article which contained only one (albeit my favorite of the lot).

Via New York Daily News:

Erin Jackson victorious at Olympics, becomes 1st Black woman to win speedskating gold

By PAUL NEWBERRY
Associated Press | Feb 13, 2022

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Erin Jackson of the United States competes in the speedskating women’s 500-meter race at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Sunday, Feb. 13, 2022, in Beijing.
(image: AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

BEIJING — Erin Jackson became the first Black woman to win a speedskating medal at the Winter Olympics.

A gold one, at that.

Jackson won the 500 meters Sunday with a time of 37.04 seconds, giving the American speedskating program its first medal of the Beijing Games and first individual medal since 2010.

But this one meant much more than national pride.

LIKE A BOSS: Erin Jackson very busy winning her speedskating gold medal in the women’s 500-meter race.
(image: AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

The 29-year-old Jackson, a former inline skater who switched to the ice shortly before the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, joined fellow American Shani Davis as the only Black athletes to win long-track speedskating medals at the Olympics.

Now, she wants others to follow their path.

“Hopefully, this has an effect,” Jackson said. “Hopefully, we’ll see more minorities, especially in the USA, getting out and trying these winter sports.”

Erin Jackson looking beautiful in profile on the ice after her winning heat. 
(image: AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

The silver went to Miho Takagi of Japan, while Angelina Golikova of the Russian team took the bronze.

Jackson’s gold came after the native of balmy Ocala, Florida, slipped at the U.S. trials and shockingly finished third, putting her spot on the Olympic team in jeopardy.

But teammate Brittany Bowe, another Ocala skater who finished first at the trials, gave up her spot on the team to ensure Jackson would get to compete in Beijing.

“She made a really big sacrifice for me,” Jackson said. “I’ll be grateful to her forever.”

As it turned out, the Americans received a third slot in the 500 when the final allocations were made, so Bowe got to skate as well.

[Bowe] finished 16th.

They embraced after Jackson clinched the gold.

“She hugged me and we cried,” the winner said. “She said she’s really proud of me and I said a lot of thank yous.”

Jackson skated in the next-to-last of 15 pairs with Takagi’s time of 37.12 — set about a half-hour earlier in the fourth pairing — in her sights.

If she was still thinking about that slip at the U.S. trials, it sure didn’t show.

Erin Jackson looking like a goddamn SUPERHERO at a speedskating practice session on Wednesday.
(image: AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Jackson bolted off the line and was under Takagi’s time as she veered into the first turn. She kept up her speed through the crossing straight and into the final turn, swinging both arms furiously as she came to the finish of speedskating’s shortest race.

As soon as her skates crossed the line, Jackson’s head turned toward the scoreboard.

She broke into a big smile when she saw the “1″ beside her name. Her coach, Ryan Shimabukuro, pumped his arms and slapped hands with her as she glided by.

There was still one pairing left, but Jackson knew she could do no worse than bronze.

A few minutes later, the gold was hers.

“You’re an Olympic champion,” Shimabukuro told her.

Jackson sat on the padding along the infield, shedding a few tears with her head bowed.

She was no doubt reflecting, too, on her remarkable journey.
The inline and roller derby skater knew she would have to trade her wheels for blades if she wanted to go for Olympic glory.

Making the switch just months before the Pyeongchang Games, she was such a fast study that she earned a spot on the U.S. team. She finished 24th in the 500, but it was clear that she had barely tapped into her potential.

During the current World Cup season, Jackson suddenly emerged as one of the world’s best sprinters. She won four of eight 500 races — the first Black woman to earn one of those titles, as well — and came to the Olympics as one the favorites.

“When I won the first World Cup, I was like, ‘OK that’s strange. Let’s see where it goes,’” Jackson recalled. “Then I won another and I was like, ‘Well, maybe I can do this.’

She lived up to the billing in Beijing, becoming the first American woman to win an individual Olympic medal since 2002.

“Words cannot explain how proud I am of her,” Bowe said. “I knew she had the chance to do something really special, and she just showed the world why she deserved to be here.”

Jackson grabbed an American flag and did a victory lap around the Ice Ribbon oval, the stars and stripes fluttering above her head.

Erin Jackson skating the ice and hoisting an American flag after winning her gold medal-winning time.
(image: AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

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I found much more detailed background on Erin Jackson from this AP article, published before her medal-winning race, including this:

Jackson describes herself as more of a student than an athlete. She certainly has the credentials, having graduated with honors from the University of Florida in 2015 with a degree in materials science and engineering. She earned an associate’s degree in computer science and is working toward another associate’s in kinesiology.

“I couldn’t imagine not taking every opportunity I can to better my education,” she said. “I value education so much.”

Jackson took a year off from classes to prepare for the Olympics, but she’s missing the academic grind.

“I’m better all around when I’m a little busier,” she said. “Right now, I feel like I’ve gotten really lazy.”

LAZY. LOL.

Among her many goals is increasing diversity in a sport dominated by white athletes. She has reached out to Edge Outdoors, a Washington state non-profit that provides scholarships to cultivate women of color in snow sports, about possibly starting a Utah chapter.

YES PLZ!!

Erin Jackson, smiling as she skates on Olympic ice after winning her speed skating gold medal.
(image: AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

A zoomed crop from the previous image of Erin Jackson’s radiantly beautiful face, smiling as she skates on Olympic ice after winning her speed skating gold medal, because this face is EVERYTHING.
(image: AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

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Day 1 of Black History Month 2022 (Lori Teresa Yearwood) is here.
Day 1 of Black History Month 2022 (Lori Teresa Yearwood) is here.
Day 2 (Mallence Bart-Williams) is here.
Day 3 (Emmett Till) is here.
Day 4 (A Tale of Two Citizens) is here.
Day 5 (Trayvon Martin) is here.
Day 6 (Franchesca Ramsey) is here.
Day 7 (National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day and the Black Aids Institute) is here.
Day 8 (extreme racial disparities in marijuana arrests) is here.
Day 9 (Summer of Soul/1969 Harlem Cultural Festival) is here.
Day 10 (current and historic racist domestic terrorism, Steve Phillips/Democracy in Color) is here.
Day 11 (Gee’s Bend Quilters) is here.
Day 12 (egregious anti-Black (& anti LGBTQ+) behavior at a NY State high school is here.