List of African-American sports firsts

African Americans are a demographic minority in the United States. The first achievements by African Americans in various fields historically marked footholds, often leading to more widespread cultural change. The shorthand phrase for this is "breaking the color barrier".[1][2]

The world of sports generally is invoked in the frequently cited example of Jackie Robinson, who became the first African American of the modern era to become a Major League Baseball player in 1947, ending 60 years of segregated Negro leagues.[3]

19th century

1879

1884

1899

20th century

1902

  • First African American professional basketball player: Harry Lew (New England Professional Basketball League)[12] (See also: 1950)
  • First African American boxing champion: Joe Gans, a lightweight

1904

  • First African American to participate in the Olympic Games, and first to win a medal: George Poage (two bronze medals)[13]

1908

1916

1917

1920

1921

1924

1929

1946

  • First African American to sign a contract with an NFL team in the modern (post-World War II) era: Kenny Washington

1947

1948

1949

1950

1951

1953

1956

1957

1961

1962

1963

1964

1966

1967

1968

1970

1972

1975

1977

1979

1981

1982

1984

1986

1987

  • First African American man to sail around the world solo: Teddy Seymour (See also: 1992)

1988

  • First African-American NFL referee: Johnny Grier
  • First African American to win a medal at the Winter Olympics (a bronze in figure skating): Debi Thomas
  • First African-American quarterback to start (and win) in the Super Bowl: Doug Williams

1989

1991

1992

1993

1994

1996

1997

1998

21st century

2002

2003

  • First African American to win a Career Grand Slam in tennis: Serena Williams (See also: Althea Gibson, 1956; Arthur Ashe, 1968)

2004

2006

  • First African-American individual Winter Olympic gold medal winner: Shani Davis (men's 1,000 meter speed skating) (See also: Vonetta Flowers, 2002)

2007

2008

2009

2010

2012

  • First African-American gymnast to win the women's artistic individual all-around at the Olympic Games: Gabby Douglas

2013

  • First African American gymnast to win the women's artistic individual all-around at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships: Simone Biles

2014

2015

2018

  • First African American to play for Team USA Hockey in the Olympic Games: Jordan Greenway

2020

See also

  • Race and sports
  • List of coaches of Asian heritage in sports leagues in the United States

Notes

  1. Clifton was the first to sign an NBA contract and subsequently play, Cooper was the first to be drafted by an NBA team, and Lloyd was the first to play in an NBA regular-season game because his team's opening game was one day before the others.
  2. At the time, the NCAA had not yet adopted its three-division system. Illinois State was in the NCAA University Division, which became Division I in 1973. The NCAA retroactively considers University Division members to have been Division I members.
  3. Although Flood's legal challenge was unsuccessful, it brought about additional solidarity among players as they fought against baseball's reserve clause and sought free agency.
  4. The NHL had fielded black players for more than 20 years, with the first being Willie O'Ree in 1958, but all previous black players were Black Canadians and not African Americans. In 1996, Mike Grier (Edmonton Oilers) became the first to have been both born and exclusively trained in the U.S., per Allen, Kevin (January 14, 2008). "Willie O'Ree still blazing way in NHL 50 years later". USA Today. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  5. Lewis Hamilton became the first black Formula One racer in 2006, but he is a British citizen of Grenadan ancestry, and not an African American. Ribbs did not compete in a race, but drove a Formula One car professionally in January 1986 as a tester for the BrabhamBMW at Estoril, Portugal.
  6. Woods' mixed ancestry — ¼ Chinese, ¼ Thai, ¼ African-American, ⅛ white, and ⅛ Native American — also makes him the first Asian American to achieve this feat. He is also the first of only four golfers of primarily non-European descent to win a men's major, with the others being Vijay Singh (an Indian Fijian), Michael Campbell (a Māori from New Zealand), and Y.E. Yang (South Korean).
  7. Announced as Bobcats owner in December 2002, although team did not begin play until 2004.
  8. Smith and Dungy both reached this milestone on the same day, although Smith was technically the first due solely to scheduling. The NFC and AFC Championship Games are always held on the same day. In the playoffs that followed the 2006 NFL season, the NFC game was played first.

References

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  2. Herbst, Philip H (1997). The Color of Words: An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Ethnic Bias in the United States. Intercultural Press. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-877864-97-1
  3. Sailes, Gary Alan (1998). "Jackie Robinson: Breaking the Color Barrier in Team Sports". African Americans in Sport: Contemporary Themes, Transaction Publishers. p. 8. ISBN 978-0-7658-0440-2
  4. William Edward White: Statistics and History Baseball-Reference
  5. Husman, John. "June 21, 1879: The cameo of William Edward White". The Society for American Baseball Research.
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  7. Malinowski, Zachary (February 15, 2004). "Who was the first black man to play in the major leagues?". Providence Journal.
  8. Siegel, Robert (January 30, 2004). "Black Baseball Pioneer William White's 1879 Game". National Public Radio.
  9. Fatsis, Stefan (January 30, 2004). "Mystery of Baseball: Was William White Game's First Black?". The Wall Street Journal.
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Bibliography
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