We love celebrating the incredible LGBTQIA+ athletes who are redefining what it means to compete with courage, authenticity, and excellence. These groundbreaking competitors are not only dominating their fields, but creating a more inclusive world where the next generation can thrive as their true selves.

Sport: BMX

@hannah_roberts_bmx

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Hannah Roberts is a dominant BMX freestyle athlete, a six-time World Champion, and a two-time Pan American Games champion. Roberts had a perfect 2019 World Cup season, to claim the series title, and went on to win the Pan Am Championships and National Championships that same season. She also made history as the first female to land a 360-Tailwhip in competition. In the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Roberts secured a historic silver medal as BMX freestyle made its debut as an Olympic sport.

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Roberts previously said, “Being queer in my sport, freestyle is in the name. My riding is a very easy way to express myself. I put myself and my soul into my riding, and I really hope it shows when I’m competing.”

Sport: Triathlon

@rachelmcb

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Rach McBride has redefined excellence across multiple endurance disciplines, claiming five Ironman 70.3 Championships and three consecutive Unbound 200 Gravel nonbinary titles while establishing themselves as one of the sport's most formidable competitors. Known as the "Purple Tiger," they've dominated with 11 Ironman 70.3 fastest bike splits and 10 bike race-leading transitions, while their gravel racing prowess spans numerous non-binary wins across huge events.

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Rach stands as a trailblazer for non-binary representation in professional sports, becoming the first openly gender non-binary professional triathlete. They said, “I was actually scared of fully ‘coming out’ and committing to the work it takes to use they/them. But I realized I have the ability to affect change and inspire others outside the binary as well, and it became more important and honest for me to raise my voice and be open about my authentic self.”

Team: LOVB Salt Lake

@hales__storm

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Since joining the U.S. Women's National Team in 2018, Haleigh Washington captured Olympic gold at Tokyo 2021 with Best Middle Blocker honors and added Olympic silver at Paris 2024. The 6-3 powerhouse has also secured Volleyball Nations League titles in 2019 and 2021, while earning recognition as Best Blocker. In college, she had an outstanding career at Penn State, culminating in a 2014 NCAA championship and three AVCA First Team All-American selections.

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Washington takes pride in her identity as a queer athlete representing Team USA on the world's biggest stages. She said, “There are beautiful things that I try to represent when I'm in that USA jersey, and it might not always be what the world expects when they think of America. But America is just so much more than this cookie-cutter, stereotypical mold. So it's an honor to represent queer folks in the USA jersey.”

Sport: Track and Field Sprinter
@itsshacarri

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Sha'Carri Richardson claimed gold medals in both the 100m and 4x100m relay at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, cementing her status as the world's fastest woman. At the 2024 Olympics, Richardson made her Olympic debut with an incredible performance, earning silver in the 100m and delivering the anchor leg of the 4x100m relay final, coming from behind to pass two athletes and secure gold for Team USA.

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Off the track, Richardson is a proud representative of her bisexual identity, using her platform to inspire authenticity and acceptance.

Team: New York Liberty

@t__cloud9

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One of the W’s most elite guards, Natasha Cloud has found herself a new home with the defending champion New York Liberty this season. The Philadelphia native's nine-year WNBA career has been defined by elite playmaking and strong defense, earning three All-Defensive team selections while leading the league in assists in 2022. Known for her competitiveness and leadership on both ends of the floor, she has consistently elevated her teams while establishing herself as one of the league's premier two-way guards.

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Cloud shared, “For me, it was so transformational to finally be out as who I am as a bisexual woman, as a biracial woman. It’s so crazy, because when I finally did tap into those feelings, it really brought my whole world together.”

Team: Kansas City Current

@debinhaa7

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International women's soccer star Debinha has earned 146 caps for Brazil, scoring 61 international goals and ranking third all-time in national team history. The midfielder from Brasópolis has captured two Copa América titles (2018, 2022) and competed in multiple Olympic Games and World Cups. Her club career includes two NWSL Championships with the North Carolina Courage (2018, 2019), and she was named the 2019 Championship MVP. She also scored a record-setting nine goals for KC Current in her 2023 season.

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Her journey to authenticity wasn't without challenges, as she reflected, "Standing out wasn't always a good thing. The boys made jokes when I played with them, and girls at school teased me for wearing sporty clothes. The bullying worried my mom. She wanted to protect me, so she told me to play with the girls, to dress more feminine, to tie my hair tighter. But I just wanted to be me. I wanted to go out on the street barefoot and play soccer with my friends. I wanted to play soccer to leave everything else behind."

Sport: Wrestling

@miraculouskc

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Two-time Olympian Kayla Miracle has established herself as one of the USA’s elite wrestlers, competing in both Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024 while breaking barriers as the first openly gay Olympic women's wrestler. The Indiana native made history in high school as the first and only female to reach the Indiana state finals while at Culver Academies. Miracle's dominance continued at Campbellsville University, where she won four Women's Collegiate Wrestling Association national championships from 2015 to 2018.

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“With wrestling, we always try to say, ‘any body can wrestle,’” Miracle said. “Shape, size, gender, religion, orientation. They try to be very inclusive. I’m proud to be part of a community that is really trying to push for that.”