Hundreds of Olympians were thrilled to represent Team USA in 2020. So naturally, when the International Olympic Committee postponed the event due to the pandemic, athletes were crushed. Many women in sports, though, decided to use their newfound time to train even harder for the 2021 Olympics.
According to the World Economic Forum, 49% of this year’s Olympians were women — the highest percentage in years. Women are wowing Olympic judges and audience members more and more every year.
With women dominating this year’s Olympics and winning over our hearts, here are four women in sports who stand out.
Emma Coburn
Butte, Colo., native Emma Coburn has been competing in the Olympics for a decade now. Her forte lies in endurance sports. In 2012, at age 21, she was the youngest Team USA runner in the London Games. In 2019, Coburn went home a world championship silver medalist in the 3000-meter race with a spot in the 2020 Olympics.
Coburn’s family is her greatest motivation as her mom is currently battling colon cancer. Beating her personal record in 2019 and winning that silver medal in front of her mom meant everything.
Despite the Olympics being postponed a year, Coburn still had a positive outlook and hoped to “be back on that podium.” She had to train hard with her coaches and remain as healthy as possible by consuming hardcore healthy foods to become the star athlete she is today.
Sydney McLaughlin
At just age 21, Sydney McLaughlin is already a two-time Olympian. Originally from New Jersey, she recently set a world record in the 400-meter hurdles event at the US Olympic Trials with a time of 51.90. While at the Olympics, she shattered that time and set a new world record of 51.46 seconds to bring home the gold medal.
When she was just 16 years old, McLaughlin qualified for the Rio Olympics, making her the youngest runner in the competition since 1972.
McLaughlin shared her extensive fitness and nutrition routine with Fitness Reaper explaining realistic goals, focus, and support are the keys to maintaining a healthy fitness regimen. Before a big race, she also tries to eat foods that give her clean natural energy to fuel herself.
Allyson Felix
Among these women in sports is well-known veteran, Allyson Felix. In fact, before the 2021 Olympics, Felix was a nine-time Olympic medalist with six gold and three silver medals. The Los Angeles native primarily competes in the 400-meter race and relay.
Felix won her first Olympic gold medal when she was barely 18 years old. She holds the most medals on the USA track and field team. However, in 2018, Felix had a traumatic experience giving birth to her daughter, causing her to question whether she’d ever compete again.
Ultimately, she didn’t let this trial bring her down. Through rigorous training and determination, she jumped back into her favorite sport and recently made history with her 10th Olympic medal in the 2021 Tokyo Games.
Emily Sisson
Although Emily Sisson is a one-time Olympian so far, she is a fan favorite. At the Olympic trials in 2020, she had to drop out of the marathon at the 22-mile mark and was devastated.
Instead of giving up, the Missouri native persevered and gave the 10,000-meter race her all. She claimed she is the fittest she has ever been, and she took the lead in the race after her first mile.
Sisson is certainly among the many women in sports to keep a close eye on in future running events as she has already shown great gusto and willpower to move forward after major athletic challenges.
Women in Sports Prioritize Health
Coburn, McLaughlin, Felix, Sisson, and so many other women in sports are paving the way for future female athletes. They consciously choose to not give up and to make their health a top priority daily.
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