Who is your black sporting hero Who is your black sporting hero?
We asked BBC Sport staff to name their heroes, help them define their identities, and who inspired them to fall in love sport.
Ian Wright - Nesta McGregor
Wright scored 185 goals for Arsenal and nine for England. He also enjoyed spells with six other clubs.
Ian Wright was a huge influence on me as a child. Nothing has changed as an adult.
It was the Bogle dance goal celebration, the gold tooth and the confident way he walked around a pitch back then. He continues to use his voice today to protest discrimination.
Arsenal legend. England international. Unashamedly black.
He sounded, looked and behaved exactly like the people I grew up with in south-east London. Ian was able to do it. We can too. Even though my dream of playing professional football didn't come true (Dulwich Hamlet's reserve soccer team was the closest), it's a good back-up to be able to write about the sport.
Wrighty's and my lives have many uncanny similarities. His mother, Nesta Wright-Phillips, shares my name and I was a youth player in the same youth soccer team with Shaun Wright Phillips. Wrighty's start came from Ten Em Bee FC, where I was a kid.
My grandmother used to tell me that flowers should not be placed on her grave. She wanted them while she was still alive so she could smell them. Wrighty, thank you! Here's a large bunch of your favorite blossoms. Take a look!
Ian Wright: Home Truths, BBC iPlayer
Simone Biles - Olivia Portas
Biles is an Olympic champion in gymnastics and a 19-time world champion.
Simone Biles, a fellow blogger, reminded me and others this summer that it's OK to make your own decisions.
Today's athletes are more than just athletes. They can be role models, public speakers, or political activists.
Simone proved that at the Tokyo Olympics when she decided to withdraw from the final of the gymnastics team and concentrate on her mental well-being.
She stated that "We must protect our minds, and our bodies" and not simply do what the world tells us.
It reminded me of the importance of living a short life and how precious every decision I make. Do what makes your heart happy.
Myrtis Dightman by Califia Davis
Dightman is part a proud but not always visible history of black cowboys from the USA. This was highlighted by protestors at a Texas march in honor of George Floyd in 2020
My childhood was spent barrel racing and I felt excluded from rodeo as a horse girl. Myrtis Dightman proved to me that there was space in rodeo.
He was the first black cowboy to participate in the 1964 National Finals Rodeo. Six more times did he qualify after being told that he couldn't compete if he was white. Bull riding is a badass sport. I don't know of any other event that packs so much drama into eight seconds. But it's not as badass than breaking down barriers in a sport most people associate with the Good Ol' Boys.
Dightman is a legend and I will always feel at home in the saddle, even though I am no longer barrel racing.
Sir Viv Richards – by Stephen Lyle
Richards scored 8,540 Test runs in the West Indies and 14,698 first-class runs and 7,349 one day runs for Somerset.
Black excellence was not well-known in the 1980s. However, there was no hiding the West Indies cricket team or Viv Richards.
He would walk out and face the fastest bowlers, without helmet, chewing gum, ready for entertainment. He would win, but he would do it in such a way that his opponents would be envious.
Viv taught us black children that we could also be the best and do things our own way. He was proud of his black roots and wore red, green, and gold sweatbands to the pitch.
I had the honor of meeting Viv once. He told me that he turned down a fortune to play in South Africa apartheid cricket was the best thing he ever did. Hero, legend, GOAT.
John Barnes - Nelson Kumah
Barnes won two league titles at Liverpool and two FA Cups. He also won 79 England caps.
My life can be divided into two parts: life before Barnes and life after Barnes.
My own upbringing coincided with his rise to the top of English football with Liverpool late in the '80s. My musical tastes shifted to Public Enemy and it was time to claim one of my own footballing heroes, my father.
In my eyes, Liverpool's 1988 title-winning team will always be remembered. Barnes was the heartbeat for that team. He taught me football could be an art and that black people can stand up against racism. But most importantly, he showed that black people can be the best.
It's been more than 30 years since I felt the same way about him. He has changed my life. He made everything possible.
Mark Lewis-Francis by Tom Gayle
Lewis-Francis (right) won 4x100m Olympic Gold at Athens 2004 with Darren Campbell (left), Marlon Darish (right), and Jason Gardener
I was a young, but insignificant, youth athlete who witnessed firsthand how Mark Lewis-Francis rose to prominence as a sprinting talent.
My dad also pinned a teen Lewis-Francis against a bus during a fight. My father did this to protect a child he believed was on his way to greatness. He was right.
My family and I screamed down the home straight in Athens, 2004 as Lewis-Francis beat Team GB's heavily favoured Americans to win Olympic 4x100m relay gold. It took 0.01 seconds.
Shaun Wright-Phillips by Liam Loftus
Shaun Wright-Phillips, footballer for England and Chelsea, Man City, QPR
Shaun Wright-Phillips - my sporting hero. A big-time player with bigger shirts.
SWP29 made me feel like a man as soon as I entered the garden. As I celebrated, I dribbled around the dog and then blasted the ball past my brother, "Shauny Wright Wright Wright Wright".
Before Shaun, I enjoyed football, but I discovered that I loved watching him play every week. It would have been me, you might think, that I scored against Ukraine in 2004, the way I boasted to my friends.
I still can't pinpoint what made him so special growing up. He just was. That's football, I suppose.
Venus & Serena Williams – Nathanael Hutchinson
Venus (left) & Serena Williams, (right) have shared 30 Grand Slam singles titles.
My family and I were not big tennis fans growing up. Wimbledon was a major summer event, but I struggled to name more than five male and female players. But, my family and the sporting community were captivated by two names - Serena Williams and Venus Williams.
Richard Williams, their father, was a strict mentor and the Williams sisters worked hard to perfect their skills in a sport that was, and still is, predominantly white. Although their skin colour brought them unwelcome challenges and obstacles during their careers, it did not stop them from dominating the sport in the 2000s.
Fear struck anyone who felt drawn to either sister. Their talent, desire, passion, and talent were unmatched. You might as well accept the title of runner-up if you face them in a final.
Despite the fact that injuries and age have had a major impact on Serena's performance in recent years, she is still just one Grand Slam title away from matching Margaret Court's all time record.
The Williams sisters' star status as celestial athletes has been etched in history, regardless of whether she does.
Serena Williams - Karinah Turner
I was raised in London, just a few steps from a tennis court. My mom was a netball player so this was my favorite sport growing up. However, I do remember seeing Serena play against her sister at Wimbledon. This was a game-changer for me - to see two women from different races in a major tournament final.
From that point on, I remember being at the courts every weekend with my cousins and brother to play tennis. You can see it, and that is what we all thought.
Serena's perseverance in returning year after year is what inspires me. It is a privilege to have been able follow a sporting superstar all her way through her career.
It was amazing to see her become a mom and then go back to play. Serena Williams is my black sporting hero.
Kobe Bryant - Sam Harris
Bryant, who won five NBA titles with Los Angeles Lakers and was an 18-time All-Star, is widely considered one of the greatest basketball players ever to have played.
Kobe Bryant was more than a basketball player. He was a superhero. My 10-year-old self couldn't have imagined Kobe Bryant becoming an icon. His will to win, his desire to make real changes, and the ability to not feel pain were all icons.
While imitating his famous fadeaway, I used a sloppy piece of paper and tossed it into a trash bin. This was the closest I came to getting.
Kobe had the making-free-throws-on-a-ruptured-Achilles level of drive. His example showed how hard it is to succeed and to get better each day. He is a better father, friend, and ally.
It will always be Mamba for me.
Anthony Joshua - Patsy Goodwin
Joshua is a two time heavyweight world champion. He also won gold for Team GB in London 2012 Olympics.
Anthony Joshua is the athlete who has most encouraged me recently. After Oleksandr Usyk's September loss of the heavyweight title to him, I listened to his words.
The entire world was following AJ and commenting on him. That alone can be a great pressure. But AJ was able keep his head up and use his loss to build a better future.
He said, "I cannot go back and sulk. That's wasting my time." It was a great lesson. It's easy to see it from a negative perspective, but it was a great lesson that I can learn from and continue to build on.
I admire his fight stamina and willingness to learn, grow, and build. Humans can only do so much, and it's a reminder of the fact that life doesn't always go our way.
Patrick Vieira - By Adam Samuel
Vieira won four FA Cups at Arsenal and three league titles. He also won the 1998 World Cup with France and the 2000 European Championship with France.
The striding galop. The poise. Leadership. The ability to block all noise.
As an Arsenal fan growing up in east London, there was one man who captured my imagination. It's not the Frenchman that you think, it's Patrick Vieira.
It would be difficult to choose someone else when you can see him create, destroy and do all of these things while being the heartbeat and captain of the greatest team of all time.
His example taught black boys how to lead from the front, how to behave with class and poise, and how to be proud of yourself. There was no bling or 'rar rarity', no headlines, or declaring himself a King. He was the coolest cat on pitch, purring in every way.
My generation was fortunate to have seen Patty V at his peak, and that's something I will always be grateful for.
You can find some BBC Sport's Black History Month content here from last year.
