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Simone Manuel Acknowledges Her Role in Tradition of Activist Athletes

In a Sept. 12 profile with CBS’ James Brown, Olympic gold medal winner Simone Manuel talks about her historic career.

Manuel is one of a handful of people to see the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture sports exhibit before it opens Sept. 24.

After winning gold in the women’s 100-meter freestyle final back in August, the 20-year-old Stanford swimmer has had time to reflect on her career.

She tells Brown that she was relieved to win at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

“… I worked really hard to get there,” Manuel starts. “The social aspect of feeling like I didn’t fit in. And just looking back on the history of swimming … A lot of people have inspired me to stay in the sport … So hopefully, this bridges the gap and makes it easier for people who come behind me.”

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