Denise's Story
Olympic Gold Medalist
Denise Lewis
Denise Lewis OBE is a British sports presenter who formerly competed for Great Britain in track and field. Specializing in the heptathlon, Denise had a very successful career in which she won an Olympic Gold Medal at Sydney 2000 Olympics, the European Championships, and two consecutive Commonwealth Games.
Describing her start in sports, Denise said “athletics for me started with the inspiration of the Olympics. I was 8 when I watched my very first games”. She urged her mother to let her join an athletics club at age 9 and as soon as she joined she recalls; “I felt like I was home, and from there, before I knew it I was a junior international. Soon, I tried a heptathlon, fell in love, and didn't look back.”
“The Sydney Olympics was the highlight of my career, not for the obvious reasons” Denise said. Everyone dreams for Olympic gold, but she told us, “my struggle to get that gold was what gives me the most satisfaction and the greatest sense of achievement - more than the medal if I'm being honest”. In the buildup to those Olympics, “in pursuit of excellence I moved to Holland to train and immersed myself in the culture; tried to learn the difficult language” Given this continued dedication, when she got an achilles tendon injury just before the Sydney Olympics, she was devastated. She told us “and so to come through that with the discipline, the trust, and the mental fortitude to still get through the two days of competition, and win, gives me immense satisfaction. No matter what I have gone on to do, I have always got that comfort within me that I went for it, and achieved, so that gives me great peace”.
When we asked Denise how her race as a black woman affected both her sporting career and life in general she said “race hasn't affected my pathway in sport, and that's the beauty of track and field; it’s very much performance-driven and is completely objective. You get the childhood name-calling but I've always had a strong sense of self and identity to know that it’s usually someone else’s problem and not mine. I would definitely say that outside of my track and field career, opportunities were probably more limited because of my color. It may be disappointing but I'm a huge believer that you have to push on through things like that, to make sure that the next generation, my young people, my children, my godchildren, don't believe that their skin should be a limiting factor. You need to instill in black and brown children that they can achieve. Because you will not see those windows of opportunity if you feel like you're disadvantaged. They can. They can achieve despite the limitations of the system.”
On the topic of using our platform as black athletes, Denise admitted that “in my era, as the leading black sports stars, we didn't connect and talk about our lived experiences enough. We didn’t have social media and a platform like there is now, but we could have made more of an impact earlier, had more conversations, and done more than just being present and being there, to make it slightly easier for the next generations. I think it's essential to be using our voices to speak up. But I'm immensely proud of athletes like yourself [Darcy and Courtnie]. Sportsmen and women, singers, actors are actively using the platforms that they have to galvanize, to speak up, and to speak out. There are two levels to it. There's the speaking up and speaking out. But then there's also what you're doing behind the scenes, like your work at Beyond Our Game. Some people are natural activists and they want to project and be vocal, but there's still a lot of work to be done on the ground as well, and sometimes finding those allies quietly that can champion diversity is as important. Ultimately, as long as you’re doing something that's the most important thing.”
In regard to Women's History Month Denise spoke about how much “The legacy of strength and determination and courage, especially as black women” means to her. She said, “Women, you are just everything, your purpose is so massive, so huge, so relevant, so elevating - you can rely on women to lift up other women. I have an incredible sports support network of women that I just wouldn't be the person I am today without those sounding boards. I invariably turn to a woman to bolster and give me confidence. There are so many women around the world who do not have a voice, who are oppressed, and don't have the rights that we have in the West, and so I think it is so important to celebrate and be vocal for those women as well. Whether it's in the workplace or in voting, it's right that in society 50% of the opinions should be heard. We've come a very long way. It is only 100 years ago when we didn't have any rights, and in the last 30/40 years that we've made huge strides. Things are changing, and they are changing rapidly. What we have to learn as women is that we have very powerful voices and actions, and we just need to be able to support more women, better, all the time. And on social media platforms, we need to make sure of the messages we leave for the next generation”.
With Denise being a role model for us, we asked her what she thinks is the importance of having role models, both for black athletes and for female athletes. She said “it's essential to have strong female role models. There are times when we couldn't have any of it, but we can have it all. You can be what you want to be if you have the right attitude and the right application and you look for those bright moments. You've got to aim high. If you start with your bar too low, why would you jump high? I had local role models as well which is important because it just broadens your horizon and allows you to believe it is possible.”
“I think far too often we don't connect, we don't reach out, we don’t network out and talk about our shared experiences. You will take inspiration from someone else’s story, and it will give you the opportunity to look at whatever you're doing in a different way. Invariably when you have this shared network it acts as an inspiration. It acts as a catalyst for change for yourself, or affirmation that you're doing the right things and thinking in the right ways. There will be someone that reaches out to your network at Beyond Our Game and goes ‘I need help. I'm struggling, I've got no one to talk to, no one looks like me on my team, my coach doesn't understand me.’ That is hard in team sports as we don't have enough Black or Asian coaches in the performance pathway. Sometimes you just need that mentor, that person to talk to. At Beyond Our Game, we strive to create a space where vulnerability is encouraged and inclusivity is at the forefront. We share stories so that when someone thinks they are alone in their struggle, they are given comfort in knowing that they are supported by a community of people who have similar experiences
Denise closed with “You're doing a great job [at Beyond Our Game], athletes will benefit from it massively. I take a lot of comfort when I look at individuals like yourself and Courtnie, and your generation, because it has got so much sway and so much influence. Because you want that continuum to see that there's change, there's legacy, there's progress and you guys have got it all in your hands at Beyond Our Game.”