The figure skating arena of the Beijing Winter Olympics has attracted much attention in recent days, and this popular and highly artistic sport is rarely seen by African Athletes. The US media published another question about a clichéd topic, where are the black athletes in the United States in the figure skating arena?
The Associated Press reported on February 11 local time that after the centuries-old figure skating became a sport in the early days, it was popular in Europe and the United States for a long time, and almost only belonged to white people until the 1990s.
Associated Press reflections on "Where Are Black Figure Skaters?"
Since the beginning of the 21st century, athletes from Asia have gradually shined on the figure skating field, and Chinese, Japanese and Korean athletes have increasingly become the favorites to win in figure skating events. However, many people wonder: how can a "black butterfly" leave the same lasting mark on white ice?
At the Beijing Winter Olympics, no black athletes represented the United States in figure skating, but the U.S. team included five Asian-American athletes, the Associated Press reported. The Canadian team and the French team have sent black figure skaters to several consecutive Winter Olympics, but the American team that took the lead in breaking the barrier of skin color barriers has basically disappeared the "black butterfly".
At the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Debi Thomas became the first Black American to win a medal at the Winter Olympics, one of the pioneers of black figure skating. But after her, almost no one else has been able to stand out in the Olympic games.
Elladj Balde, a former competitive figure skater in Cana, believes that in the early days of the sport, blacks were barred from entering figure skating clubs or from participating in related competitions.
Former Canadian competitive figure skater Balde
"Whether it's for Europeans to establish blonde figure skating standards, or during the apartheid period of the American rink, it's hard for black skaters to break through invisible barriers in the sport," Balde said, "which means there's not much room and time for black figure skaters to innovate, especially for a sport that limits everyone to a specific style." ”
Canadian figure skater Vanessa James, 34, and partner Eric Radford played in pair skating at the Beijing Winter Olympics.
Canadian black figure skater Vanessa (center) with partner Radford and teammates
The Associated Press said that as the only black figure skater at the Beijing Winter Olympics, Vanessa not only carries the hope of Canadian skating, but also carries the ardent sustenance of African Americans around the world to play on ice.
Vanessa believes that more black people must participate before history-making people can emerge. "If you can't see yourself in the sport, how can you believe you belong to the sport, that you can be the best person, that you can be creative or acceptable because of your uniqueness," she said.
In the 1930s, Mabel Fairbanks, as an African-American and Indian American woman, made American figure skating history and became a trailblazer despite being disillusioned with his Olympic dreams due to racist exclusion. She knocked on the door for latecomers, and debbie Thomas, the only one to win the women's singles gold medal at the World Championships, was one of her students.
The US media said that the American team, which has always flaunted diversity and inclusiveness, only lacked black faces. In addition to the socioeconomic barriers associated with competition from the white elite, this is also an issue that governing bodies have struggled to address for years. Then, in 2020, after the murder of black George Floyd by U.S. police, the diversity of figure skating came into a larger focus, amplifying the Black Lives Matter movement's call for racial justice and fairness.
Last year, the U.S. figure skating team hired Kadari Taylor-Watson, a black woman, as its first director of diversity, equity and inclusion. Her work includes conducting the first diversity survey of skaters, referees and other sports officials in support of a more inclusive commitment to black athletes.
"We have to think not only about the 100-year history of figure skating in the United States, but also about the 100-year history of the United States and all the racial upheavals that are going on in the societies that create these obstacles," Taylor Watson said. ”
Nandu reporter Shi Minglei