The best athletes in the world

26/02/2021

Adeline Gray, World Champion Wrestler
“I think people used to view female athletes as very butch, masculine—you kind of had to disregard your femininity to excel at an elite sport," Gray told ESPN in July 2016. "Now it’s just a different world...You are allowed to be a female and be considered beautiful and still be an athlete and still be badass in that realm.”

26/02/2021

Claressa Shields, Olympic Boxer
"For a long time, I thought my nose was pretty big. I'd get hit in my nose and I'd think, 'This nose is huge!' But now I think I'm very beautiful," Shields told ESPN in July 2016. "I'm built the way that I am—with my shape and my figure, with my muscles—and I'm grateful for it."

26/02/2021

Natalie Coughlin, Olympic Swimmer
"I'm self-conscious about my arms. It's really hard to find a dress that's a size 10 in the lats but a size 4 in the waist," Coughlin wrote in a July 2015 essay for ESPN. "But I want to be as successful as I can. If that means having big arms, I'll take big arms."

26/02/2021

Ibtihaj Muhammad, Olympic Fencer
"As a kid, having bigger legs was always something I struggled with—even just with finding clothes that fit," Muhammad told Shape in August 2016. But I love my legs as an adult. I embrace my shape and my body. I love the strength in my legs and I know that the stronger I can make them the more efficient I'll be as an athlete."

24/02/2021

Carli Lloyd, Olympic Soccer Player and World Cup Champion
"I love my arms. I've worked really hard with my upper body and have gotten them really strong," Lloyd told Shape in August 2016. "Some women maybe wouldn't want muscles in their arms, but I think it's awesome and embrace it."

24/02/2021

Gabby Douglas, Olympic Gymnast
In August 2016, Douglas' mother and manager Natalie Hawkins talked to Teen Vogue about how Douglas overcame an insecurity she had about her arms. "I remember when everyone was talking about her arms, and she became very self-conscious about how muscular they were. Then Gabrielle saw the elegance with which Serena Williams handled all the negative criticism of her own body," Hawkins said. "It was liberating for my daughter to see that. She said, 'I don’t have to apologize to anyone about my body. My body is beautiful.'" Douglas added, "When I came through it, I felt as if I could overcome anything."

24/02/2021

Kayla Harrison, Olympic Judoka
"I think growing up, especially for young girls in judo, it's really difficult. You're told the lighter you are, the better you'll fight," Kayla Harrison told ESPN in April. "What I truly believe is that if you're going to win, you'll win at whatever weight you fight. I always preach that strong is beautiful, strong is powerful, and you shouldn't change your body for sport, for society, for anything."

20/02/2021

Michelle Carter, Olympic Shot Putter
"We want [female athletes] to take care of themselves, feel their best, eat healthy and understand that it's OK to have muscles—because in some sports, you need those muscles," Carter told TODAY in August 2016. "We don't want to put them in a box. We want to take away the box so they can be all they can be."

20/02/2021

Aly Raisman, Olympic Gymnast
"I think everyone goes through phases in life where they feel insecure. I have plenty of times. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned to appreciate my body," Raisman said in an interview with Motto in April. "Young girls should be taught that there’s no ideal body type. We’re all different and unique in our way—if we all looked the exact same, we’d be very boring."

20/02/2021

Serena Williams, Olympic Tennis Player and Grand Slam Champion
"I love my body, and I would never change anything about it," Williams told SELF in August 2016. "I'm not asking you to like my body. I'm just asking you to let me be me. Because I'm going to influence a girl who does look like me, and I want her to feel good about herself."

20/02/2021

20/02/2021