Being an Olympian with Rochelle Stevens
This week was the closing ceremony for the 2021 Summer Olympics. The Olympics has taken place every four years since 1896 except for three times. World War 1 and 2 derailed the games and Covid – 19. It just never happens.
From the opening events we got to see how our athletes were going to handle it. I’m not going to stay in the pool but when Caleb Dressel spoke to the reporters following his gold medal 100-meter freestyle. He was asked how he was feeling and his reply was “Its been tough” as held back tears. I’m sure he was overwhelmed with joy from the victory, but you could also tell there was so much more.
That moment said a lot to me. And as the Olympics continued It became clear that the extra year of grind took its toll on other athletes. Specifically, the greatest gymnast of all time Simone Biles. Its not up for debate. I’ve been following her journey to stardom since the 2016 games in Rio. She has dominated the world for the better part of a decade and at the age of 24 has pushed the sport to levels so high judges have trouble scoring her due to her difficult routines.
Even with how dominate she has been, timing is always a factor. As this generational talent prepared for the 2020 Olympics, she said during her documentary that it would be her last competition. She had dedicated her life the sport but the time and the energy that she gave up she was no longer sure if that’s what she wanted. I’m sure a lot of this was because there wasn’t much else to prove in the sport.
But once Covid delayed the Olympics it forced Biles to delay her retirement and stay locked in to continue preparing for 2021. It ended up causing her a bit of trouble. During her vault routine in the team all-around competition Biles lost herself in the air and couldn’t complete the flip she had planned. She chose to step away from the rest of competition minus her individual beam routine a week later. This gave room for her teammates to win a silver medal without her.
I say all this to highlight my personal favorite Olympian Allyson Felix. During this passed Olympics Felix became the most decorated track and field athlete in U.S history by winning her 11th career medals. I’ve been watching Felix for what seems like all my life. She came on the scene in 2004, I was a sophomore in High School.
Now at 35 there was immense pressure on Felix to still compete at such a high level, especially after her life changed by having her first child since Rio In 2016. This all made me wonder exactly how hard it was to get back where she seems to always be, on the medal stand.
This question led me to the HistoryMaker archive. Within the archive I went straight to Rochelle Stevens. One because she a Morgan State alum but also because she was former gold medalist.
Stevens competed in the 1992 in Spain winning silver in the 4x400 relay and won Gold in Atlanta in 1996 in the same event.
Upon returning to Memphis, Stevens founded the Rochelle Stevens Health and Wellness Spa. She also started and sponsored the Rochelle Stevens International Track Invitational Meet to expose high school students to college. Stevens worked as a spokeswoman and motivational speaker for many Fortune 500 companies.
A quote that stuck out to me in her interview was
“People don’t understand the commitment, the hard work, the sacrifice, the pain the dedication, the agony, the disappointments, the lack of sponsorship. Others just have no clue what it takes to achieve your dream. “
This was such a strong statement to me. It’s just so true. As fans we don’t understand what the athlete goes through to prepare to compete at such a high level. When they don’t win, we are quick to criticize.
The work that Felix had to do to get back to the medal stand, the work that Biles has put in to dominate the sport and all the other Olympians who sacrifice everything to represent their country should never be overlooked or diminished.
