After crushing Spain in the final, Team USA’s women’s water polo team collected its third straight Olympic gold medal.
Team USA’s standout goalkeeper Ashleigh Johnson spoke about representation and how it helped bring home the gold.
“Every single person on our team represents their own community, represents their own group, and we carry that very seriously,” Johnson said. “We carried that into this game, we carry that into every game.”
As for herself, Johnson says she represents “Miami, people of color in aquatics, I represent this team and I represent women in sport.”
Johnson’s heroics throughout the tournament led up to an astounding performance in the final, even by her standards. The two-time gold medalist allowed only four goals on 15 shots and stopped all six action shots in the third quarter.
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“I’m just so proud to represent who I represent today,” Johnson said. “I hope they watch that, I hope they see themselves where we are.”
