History was made over the weekend when Stanford University women’s swimming teammates Simone Manuel (l) and Lia Neal (r) were named to the U.S. Women’s Olympic swim team. It is the first time two African-American women have represented Team USA in the swim competition for the Summer Games.
Neal, 21, and Manuel, 19, are no strangers to making history. Last year, the pair were two of the top three finishers in the 2015 NCAA Women’s Swimming Championships. The third, Natalie Hinds, is also African-American.
Neal, a native of Brooklyn, N.Y., appeared in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London for Team USA. She and the 4 X 100 Meter relay team took home the bronze medal during that year’s games. Manuel, a Houston, Texas native, will be making her first appearance in the Olympics and has added the 50 Meter Freestyle event to the list of events she’ll enter.
The pair will also swim together in the 4 X 100 Meter relay.
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Little Known Black History Fact: Lia Neal And Simone Manuel was originally published on blackamericaweb.com
