Stefanie Dolson Makes History: 1st Out American Olympian to Win Gold

Another day, another historic slay.

Stefanie Dolson has made history at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics this year, becoming the first out LGBTQ+ American Olympian to win a gold medal. She follows international names like Tom Daley, Eric Radford, Matt Mitcham, and Carl Hester, who have all won gold previously — Daley's win came in Tokyo as well.

Dolson won alongside teammates Allisha Gray, Jackie, Young, and Kelsey Plum in the 3-on-3 women's basketball competition. This was the first year it was deemed an Olympic sport. Dolson also plays for the Chicago Sky in the WNBA.

“It’s always special to be the first of anything,” she said. “Basketball runs deep in the USA blood. For us to have this accomplishment as well and hopefully start something is really special.”

This is only the latest medal for LGBTQ+ athletes in a year of unprecedented visibility. In addition to the two gold medals, members of the community have taken home silver medals in softball (Amanda Chidester, Hayley McCleney, and Ally Carda for Team USA) and judo (Amandine Buchard for Team France,)  and bronze in team dressage (Carl Hester for Team Great Britain,) and softball (Joey Lye and Larissa Franklin for Team Canada.)