Erin Jackson brings home gold, first Black woman to win speed skating medal at the Winter Olympics

By Doha Madani via https://www.nbcnews.com/

The 29-year-old Floridian finished her lap in a mere 37.04 seconds, earning Team USA’s first gold in the women’s 500-meter speed skating race in decades.

A 29-year-old Florida native and lifelong rollerblader became the first Black woman to win Team USA a gold medal in speed skating Sunday.

Erin Jackson earned her first Olympic medal in the women’s 500- meter speed skating race at the Beijing Games, an event Team USA has not won since 1994. Jackson finished her lap in a mere 37.04 seconds.

It may seem unlikely that a skater who spent her life on rollerblades would be an Olympian on the ice, but Jackson quickly became a gold medal favorite. She made her Olympic debut four years ago in…

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