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Jordan Greenway, a 2015 second-round draft pick of the National Hockey League’s Minnesota Wild, will make history at the upcoming Winter Olympics as the first Black player to represent Team USA in hockey.
Currently a forward at Boston University, the 20-year-old is one of four college athletes who will represent the country.
Discussing his interest for hockey with his mother at just 12-years-old, Greenway’s career has allowed him to chart a path that not too many African American athletes have traveled. With just 13 of the 1,690 men’s Division I college hockey players being Black, he understands the significance of his presence in the sport.
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“I’ve been able to accomplish a lot of good things and just allowing a lot of African American kids who are younger than me who see kind of what I’m doing, I hope that can be an inspiration for them,” he told the Sporting News. “Go out and do something different against the typical stereotypes that most African Americans play basketball, or whatever the case is.”
His selection for the Winter Olympics came after an amazing performance in the 2017 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship in Canada. During these seven games, Greenway had three goals and five assists for the gold medal-winning U.S. team. This season alone with Boston University, the 6-foot-5, 235-pound athlete has earned seven goals and 10 assists in 19 games.
Greenway will join a few other history makers at the upcoming Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, including 17-year-old Maame Biney who became the first Black woman to qualify for the U.S. Olympic speedskating team with her short track finish last month. As well as, Erin Jackson, the first Black woman to qualify for the U.S. Olympic long track speed skating team.