Canadian soccer player Quinn made history on Friday as the first openly nonbinary transgender person to not only medal but also win gold in the Olympic Games.
The accomplishment came with the Canadian women’s soccer team beating out Sweden and earning the gold for the first time in Olympic history following a series of penalty kicks that finished out the match. Quinn helped Canada take home the bronze in the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, but they did not come out as transgender and nonbinary until last year.
“I feel proud seeing ‘Quinn’ up on the lineup and on my accreditation,” they said in an Instagram post last month. “I feel sad knowing there were Olympians before me unable to live their truth because of the world. I feel optimistic for change. Change in legislature. Changes in rules, structures, and mindsets.”
“Mostly, I feel aware of the realities. Trans girls being banned from sports. Trans women facing discrimination and bias while trying to pursue their olympic dreams,” they added. “The fight isn’t close to over … and I’ll celebrate when we’re all here.”
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Quinn, a midfielder for the Canadian team, came out publicly as transgender and nonbinary in a September Instagram post but said they identified that way in private for a longer duration. They joined several other first-time accomplished athletes who identify as transgender during this year’s Tokyo Olympics competitions.
Laurel Hubbard of New Zealand became the first transgender woman to compete in an individual weightlifter competition. However, she ultimately failed to proceed in the event after judges declared a no lift on her first three efforts on Aug. 2.
BMX freestyle rider Chelsea Wolfe, a transgender woman, qualified as an alternate for Team USA.
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At least 182 LGBT athletes are competing in the Tokyo Olympics, according to a recent tally from Oursports.com.
