July 18, 2024 • 33 mins
Sanya Richards-Ross is a record-setting athlete and the second most decorated women's track and field Olympian of all time. She’s an Olympic champion and commentator, and has been featured on “The Real Housewives of Atlanta.” She's joining Simone and Danielle to talk about resilience, what it's like to compete at the highest level in the world, and what she's most looking forward to this summer in Paris.
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Hello Sunshine, Hey besties, Our bright Side Countdown to the
Olympics continues, and today we're super excited because our guest
is a record setting athlete and the second most decorated
women's track and Field Olympian of all time. Sonia Richards
Ross is an Olympic champion and commentator and you may
recognize her from the Real Housewives of Atlanta too.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
She's joining us today to talk resilience, what.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
It's like to compete at the highest level in the world,
and what she's most looking forward to this summer in Paris.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
It's Thursday, July eighteenth. I'm Simone Boyce and.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
I'm Danielle Robe. This is the bright Side from Hello Sunshine,
a daily show where we come together to share women's stories,
to laugh, learn and brighten your day.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Danielle, our bright Side Countdown to the Olympics continues. We
are exactly a days from the start of the Paris Olympics,
which means we are exactly eight days from me clearing
my calendar so that I can just watch Olympics events
all the time. But truly, this season has got me
thinking about the precision and the pressure that these athletes
(01:11):
have to navigate as they're staring down the finish line.
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Oh yeah, especially for runners, sometimes it comes down to
a tenth or even a thousandth of a second. That's
what can separate an athlete from victory or heartbreak. In
the two thousand and four Athens Olympics women's two hundred
meters race, Veronica Campbell Brown won the gold with a
time of twenty two point zero five seconds, and Alison Felix, yeah,
(01:36):
we all know her. She finished second with a time
of twenty two point one eight seconds. The difference between
the top three finishers was less than a tenth of
a second.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
And then when we think about nineteen ninety two in Barcelona,
the women's one hundred meter sprint remains one of the
closest finishes in Olympic history. It was so close to you, guys,
slow motion footage was the only way to con firm
who won. In the end, Usay's Gail Devers took home
the gold after a painstaking waiting period for the results.
Speaker 3 (02:08):
The kind of fortitude and tenacity and just gusto that
it takes to work towards being one of the best
in the world when the margins are that small, especially
on days when things just don't go your way. Well,
to me, that requires not just physical strength, but mental
strength too.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Well. Our guest today knows what it's like to stare
at a finish line and grasp at every thousandth of
a second. Sonia richards Ross moved to America from Jamaica
when she was just twelve years old, and as a
little girl on the playground, she quickly learned she.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Was fast, real fast.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
She won a national title in women's track and field
when she was a senior in high school, and then
she made her Olympic debut. By the time she was
in college, She's won medals at the two thousand and four,
two thousand and eight, and twenty twelve Olympics, making her
the second most decorated women's track and field athlete of
all time.
Speaker 3 (03:02):
I'm just going to brag on her for a second.
She remains the only female athlete in history to win
the four hundred meter relay at three successive editions of
the Games. I know we're throwing so many numbers out there,
but TLDR impressive and this kind of success it did
not come without challenges. That's what I love about Sonia's story.
(03:23):
She's honest about it all. She was favored to win
the gold in two thousand and eight, and she landed
with the bronze, and then, after an incredible comeback in
twenty twelve, a foot injury prevented her from competing again
and it forced her to re examine her life without
the title of athlete, and since then, she's gone on
to become a sports analyst for NBC covering the Olympics.
(03:47):
She published a memoir in twenty seventeen called Chasing Grace
What the Quarter Mile has taught Me about God and life.
And she made her debut on the Real Housewives of
Atlanta just a few years ago. I know I was
tuning in, but she is leaving the show, so I
have to ask her about that.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
At the heart of all these accomplishments is her resilience,
her champions mindset, and her multitudes that shine both on
and off the track. So let's bring her in now, Sonya.
Welcome to the bright Side. Oh yeah, I'm excited. Thanks
for having me, Sonya. We are only a couple weeks
away from this summer's Olympic Games in Paris, and you
(04:25):
will be attending and covering as an NBC commentator, Who
are you going to be watching on the track this
year in Paris?
Speaker 2 (04:32):
Give us your expert preview?
Speaker 4 (04:35):
Oh Man, So you know, I don't think I'm exaggerating
when I say that this may be the deepest team
of superstar athletes that I've ever seen on the track.
We start with Shakarie Richardson and the women's hundred. There's
Sidney McLaughlin, Lavoni and the foreigner hurdles, Noah Lyles, Rye Benjamin.
(04:57):
The list just goes on and on and on with
so much talent on the track, and they're gonna be
going up against some incredible competition with athletes all over
the world. So it's just literally every day that there
is a track me on, You're gonna want to watch
it because there's gonna be somebody to watch, somebody, the
great story, Tara Davis Woodhall in the long jump. There's
(05:19):
just so much to be excited about. And I get
to be front row in Paris. I can't wait.
Speaker 1 (05:25):
We are so excited for you. There are so many
eyes on Shikari Richardson this year. I mean, she is
competing in the Olympics after missing out on Tokyo because
she tested positive for marijuana, and in her word she says,
I'm not back, I'm better, And she does seem different.
I mean, she's showing up even more authentic than she
was before. Like she's traded in the wigs for braids,
(05:48):
she's still rocking that fire manny all the time. How
would you describe the legacy that Shakerrie is creating for
herself as we speak.
Speaker 4 (05:57):
I would say it is absolutely beautiful to see all
that Sha Carrie has been through as an athlete, as
a young woman. To see her maturing right in front
of our eyes has been a treat to watch. She's
also been authentic in how she expresses how much she's growing,
(06:18):
how much it matters to her that she shows up
and represents, especially for black women. And so I can't
imagine what it was like for Sha CAIRI when she
first burst.
Speaker 2 (06:26):
Onto the scene.
Speaker 4 (06:28):
We'd never seen an athlete have that much of an
impact so quickly in our sport, and so that was
a heavy load for her to Carrie. And then of
course the disappointment was not going to her first Olympics,
and there was just so much and I felt like.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
She was fighting for her life.
Speaker 4 (06:43):
But now I think she's settled into her role as
the face of the sport. She's not fighting, she's just
going with the flow of competition.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
She just seems happier, more mature and men.
Speaker 4 (06:53):
It was really fun to watch her make the team
and now lead Team USA to Paris.
Speaker 3 (06:58):
I love hearing you talk about all these superstar female athletes,
but we can't sleep on the fact that we have
gold medalists Sonya Ross in the house. So I want
to back up a little bit and talk about your
journey because you grew up in Jamaica and you started
running at seven years old. To me, that sounds like
(07:18):
you basically started running when you were walking, like this
was just for you. So when did you know you
wanted to be an Olympian from.
Speaker 2 (07:25):
The very beginning?
Speaker 4 (07:25):
You know, being born in Kingston, Jamaica, track and field
is by far the most popular sport, and so I
remember the country shutting down to watch Merlin Atti and
some of the greats from Jamaica, and I was like,
oh my god, I want that to be be one day,
Like I want people sharing for me and rooting for me.
And I was lucky that when I was seven I
(07:47):
went out for like we had like a fun day
at school, and I beat all the boys and all
the girls, and the coach Sawda had the gift of speed,
you know. And I'm so grateful for all the coaches
and of course my family that poured into me and
allowed me to live this dream. I said when I
was nine for my class assignment, I was gonna be
an Olympic champion.
Speaker 2 (08:05):
And I did it.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
I guess you did, Sonya. You are a gold medalist,
but that road to gold was challenging. I think back
to two thousand and eight when you were favored in
the Olympics that year to win gold, but you wound
up taking home the bronze. I have no business even
asking you about this because I have never even set
foot onto an Olympic track. But what did that experience
(08:30):
teach you about resilience, about bouncing back from life setbacks.
Speaker 2 (08:36):
It taught me everything.
Speaker 4 (08:38):
It taught me everything, And in the moment I hated it,
I thought I was gonna die.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
I thought it was the worst thing that could ever happen.
Speaker 4 (08:46):
But you know now, you know, looking back on that experience,
I'm so grateful because now I am not afraid to fail,
you know, And I truly believe that failure is an
important part of our journey to success. I think more
people are afraid to fail than they are to succeed,
and that's what holds a lot of people back from
(09:07):
really living in their purpose. And so for me, having
experienced that failure on the grandest scale and realizing that
the sun came up the next morning, my heart was
still beating. Everybody that loves me was still there supporting
me and loving on me.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
It made me realize that I can rebound from anything.
Speaker 4 (09:25):
And the truth is, when you set your sights on
something so epic, you might fail. But it made me
appreciate twenty twelve so much more. I worked my butt
off to stand on that track again and to realize
that dream. And you know, I always say I felt
like I ran into my fairy tale ending.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
You did run into your fairy tale ending, because you
ended up winning gold in the twenty twelve Games in London.
I looked up photos of that moment, and you're on
that podium, You're representing Team USA, you have thousands of
people cheering for you, the music is playing, and you know,
I think they're all excited because you.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
Brought it home.
Speaker 3 (10:08):
For the US. But I can only imagine what that
moment means to you, because you're the one that knows
all of the heartache and the sacrifice that it took
to get to that moment. So what's going through your
mind when you're standing up there being award of this medal.
Speaker 4 (10:24):
It's such a good question, and every time I'm asked
that question, Danielle, I try to figure out how to
put it into words.
Speaker 2 (10:31):
Yeah, it is almost impossible.
Speaker 4 (10:33):
It is literally the greatest feeling in the world, because,
like you said, you know all the hard work that
it took to get there, you know all the people
that poured into you, all the sacrifices, everything that you
had to overcome mentally, physically to be there. And it
is true when you're on the podium and the national
anthem is playing, kind of your life kind of flashes
(10:55):
before your eyes, right. You think about childhood, and you
think about the highs and the lows, and think about
the thousand sit ups and all the rest and the
ice bass and just everything that you did, and you
just kind of wish they would just loop the anthem, like,
I need more time.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
I earned about two of these running back.
Speaker 3 (11:13):
Did anybody's face come into your mind or was it
mostly memories of you?
Speaker 4 (11:19):
Oh no, I mean by far my family, like my
mom and dad. I don't like to say I made
sacrifices because I always think that I made an investment
in my future. But when I think of my family,
I don't want to get emotional. They made sacrifices, you know,
like my mom and dad moved to the States for
us to have the opportunity. My mom turned her garage
(11:41):
into a gym. She learned to become a trainer so
that she could be my first strength coach. My dad
literally moved to Waco and came to all of my practices,
didn't miss a practice when I was in high school.
Speaker 2 (11:50):
And they did all of.
Speaker 4 (11:51):
This just for me, Like my coach Bruce Johnson, who
was with me since college and would drive to Waco
every day sixty miles to come to my practices, my
physio who was from Switzerland who moved in to my
home in Austin to be with me during the season.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
I mean, it was just countless people.
Speaker 4 (12:06):
My sister who didn't misattract me, you know, would come
on her own dime, and just my aunts. It was
less about me, and really more about all of them
because I just knew how proud they were, and it
was really a moment for all of us.
Speaker 3 (12:20):
I watched a few episodes of Real Housewives of Atlanta
while you were on it, and hearing you talk about this,
I understand your family dynamic even more because your parents, like,
we're living with you for a little bit, Like you
guys are really tight knit.
Speaker 4 (12:34):
Yeah, no, my family, they've always meant everything to me.
After the pandemic, so we all had three houses in
Texas and then we were always at my mom's house
because of course, you know, you weren't able to be
around other people. So we kind of were doing life together.
And when I decided to move to Atlanta, I was like,
you guys have to come and we'll just get one
big house. We were doing it anyway when we were
in Austin, and so it was fun, like, you know,
(12:57):
that was my real life. And a lot of people
are like, oh my god, I've never lived my parents.
But our love runs deep and we support each other
in every way that we can. And although we're not
living together anymore, you know, we still obviously had this
incredible bond and I you know, I appreciate them with
all that I am.
Speaker 3 (13:15):
You could feel that in the show, Yeah, thank you, Sonya.
Speaker 1 (13:19):
We've talked to a few Olympians on our show, and
each one of them mentions the sacrifices that go unseen,
the sacrifices of family members behind the scenes, and particularly
in your sport, there's something so symbolic about the finish line,
Like I am imagining you and all of your family members,
like your whole tribe, crossing that finish line each time. Yeah,
(13:43):
And I wonder if that finish line was as symbolic
for you as it is for all of us watching
at home. Was there something that you envisioned that was
waiting for you on the other side of the finish line.
Was the feeling the same every time that you crossed it,
or was it a different emotion each day?
Speaker 2 (14:00):
That is such a good question.
Speaker 4 (14:03):
In the four hundred, only in the four hundred the
finish line and the start line are at the same
point on the track. And I always thought that was
so significant because I always feel like there are no
finish lines, you know what I mean. It's like we're
constantly having the opportunity to do it again, to start over.
Speaker 2 (14:23):
To like relive the dream, you know.
Speaker 4 (14:25):
And so it's funny that you say that, because on
the end of every start line for me, was an
opportunity to do it again, was an opportunity to dream bigger.
It was like, was this always the springboard kind of
springing me forward? Like even when I ran through the
finish line in London and I lived this dream, it
was like, Okay, what's next. When my career transitioned, it's like, hey,
(14:46):
there's no finish line. Like, I'm just gonna keep going.
I'm gonna keep winning. I always tell people I don't
think greatness is fleeting. I think it lives in us.
And when you've achieved greatness in one area of your life,
you can do it again if you apply yourself. And
so I love that question because I think a lot
of times people think of things like this solid thing,
you cross this finish line, and it's like you're expecting
some magical thing or this thing is over. It's like, no,
(15:08):
it's like track and Field was a springboard. I learned
so much that I'm taking it to the next thing.
I'm running through this finish line to get to the
next start line.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
You know, you just.
Speaker 1 (15:15):
Gave me a whole new visual language to describe pivoting. Yeah,
I mean, I'm I truly like, I'm going to think
about pivoting differently, Like there is no finish line, it's
just a new star every time, it's a new star.
Speaker 2 (15:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:31):
When I think about this success or quote unquote failure,
even though I hate that word of a track athlete,
it's just based on seconds, sometimes tenths of seconds. It's
so nicecule is it really?
Speaker 2 (15:46):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (15:47):
Thousandths, No, it can be. It could go down to thousands. No,
your point is well made. I mean people lose back
thousands of a second. People miss the Olympic team by
thousandths of a second. Like it's yeah, it's to your point,
it is, you know, it could be that specific and
that minute.
Speaker 3 (16:02):
When I think of the personality type that it takes
to be a part of that sport, there's obviously so
much resilience, there's I think a healthy ego in a
great way, and there's this wanting of wanting to like
the wanting to be the best in the world. Yeah,
(16:23):
where did that come from for you? Like, why did
you want to be the best in the world?
Speaker 4 (16:27):
I would say from two places I would say one,
I always had like an internal drive and I still do,
like I'm so motivated to always be my best, like
it's just a natural gift, it's my superpower. But I
would also say that my dad, since I was about
nine years old, told me.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
You want to be the best in the world. You
want to be the best in the world. And he
said it so much.
Speaker 4 (16:49):
I tell people he made me believe it before I
understood what that really meant, before I understood that we
could quantify that and that it was possible. My dad
told me for years, you are going to be a
world beater.
Speaker 2 (17:01):
You're going to be the best.
Speaker 4 (17:02):
I just credit him so much for doing that for me,
for seeing greatness in me at such a young age.
And then I feel like that really bolstered me to
help me to believe it was possible.
Speaker 2 (17:12):
And I do that for my kids too.
Speaker 1 (17:14):
You know.
Speaker 4 (17:14):
It's like we have an opportunity to be that positive
voice in people's lives, especially those of our children, and
my dad was that for me, and I hope to
be that for my kids as well.
Speaker 3 (17:25):
Do you have a tool that you use for your
mental toughness?
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (17:30):
So, you know, I actually after two thousand and eight,
I started working with a sports psychologist. It's the only
regret of my career is not working with a sports psychologist. Sooner, Yeah,
every person. I talked to him like, we have a
strength coach, we have a track coach, and you have
to have a mind coach, because at the highest level
it's no longer about physical Everybody there is physically gifted
and talented and the best in the world, but it's
(17:51):
who can be mentally strong and tough enough and in
the moment, who executes the best who's gonna win. I
learned a lot from him in the final few years
of my career that I still use to this day.
There are two skills I'll share with you. One is
how to go into emotional neutral. And what that means
is that a lot of times in our lives we
(18:11):
get so worked up about stuff that haven't even happened yet. Right,
A lot of the stress we feel is about worry
about something we think is going to happen, and it
causes us so much unnecessary stress.
Speaker 2 (18:22):
And so he taught me emotional neutral. So if I
don't know.
Speaker 4 (18:25):
What's going to happen and I just don't have any
feelings about it like it's just I'll just wait until
if the worst happens, I'll react to it then, but
I'm not going to get myself all worked up about
something that hasn't happened yet. That really helps me to
keep an even mind so that I'm clear for what
is going to happen, for like what is in front
of me. The second thing he taught me was like
a physical practice. But a lot of times when we
(18:46):
get really nervous and stuff and our mind is racing heart,
we're breathing fast. If you put your hand on the
bottom of your belly and you breathe into your hand,
there is a grounding that happens to you that helps
you to become very present in the moment so that
you can now heighten your senses and awareness around what
it is that you need to do, whether it's compete
at the highest level on the track, give a speech,
(19:07):
whatever it is. It really helps to ground you when
you connect to your breath in that way, because I
think what happens is where most of the time.
Speaker 2 (19:12):
We're prepared right like we've done the work, we're ready
to go.
Speaker 4 (19:15):
It's just that we're not able to be present in
the moment to show up in the way we have
seen ourselves. We have planned for it, we just you know,
bomb it because we're not present. So those are the
two things that I do to really help myself be
present so that I can use the fullness of my
mental capacity and my skill sets to show up holy
and authentically myself.
Speaker 3 (19:35):
Thank you for passing those on.
Speaker 2 (19:36):
It's so good.
Speaker 3 (19:37):
Of course, we need to take a quick break, but
we'll be right back. Stay with us and we're back.
So you are going to be live in Paris at
(19:59):
the Olympics because you have been in these athletes shoes. Literally,
are you easier or tougher on them on air?
Speaker 2 (20:07):
Oh?
Speaker 4 (20:07):
Easier, way easier. So I've taken it on as my duty.
I care about what I say because I know that
athletes are listening, and so as much as obviously I'm
unbiased and I'm going to speak to what I see,
I'm very careful with my words. And that was that's
(20:28):
on purpose because when I was competing sometimes I felt
like the commentators would harp on she was the bronze
medalist and she you know, she was favored to win gold,
and she was like, tell the folks the good stuff like,
you don't have to always lead with the negative. And
so for me, what I hope to do, and especially
with an audience as big as what we get for
the Olympics, is for them to feel our passion for
(20:51):
the sport, for them to fall in love with the
people that they're watching, and to understand how incredible their
performances are.
Speaker 2 (20:58):
And so that's what I want to do. I want
to illuminate how hard it.
Speaker 4 (21:00):
Is for them to get here, what they're experiencing in
the village, what it's like when they're back there warming up,
when they're being held in the call room, that that
thirty ways before the race with their competition. You know,
that's what I like. I like making it feel like
the people watching aren't there and they can truly appreciate
the performances. And so I would say, you know, lighter
(21:22):
on there. I try not to be too tough.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
You know, a few years ago I interviewed Peyton Manning
and he told me that SNL was way more nerve
racking than the Super Bowl. But he meant it like
I could tell he meant it for you, is commentating
more nerve racking or performing and competing in the Olympics.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
No, Definitely, competing was way more nerve wracking for me.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
But I understand what he's saying, because the sentiment is
the thing that comes more naturally to you will feel
easier than something that somebody else thinks is would would
be easier. I wish sometimes I didn't put so much
pressure on myself to compete, like I wish I was
able to be in the mind space that I was
from about two thousand and eight and beyond, where I
was having fun and it wasn't.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
I didn't make myself.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
Always feel like the weight of the world was on
my shoulders, And certainly because of those skills that I
learned in the latter part of my career, I carry
that over to what I do now. So it was
definitely much tougher on the check than it has been
being in the booth.
Speaker 1 (22:23):
Well, the athletes that you cover are so lucky to
have you in the booth because you just spoke about
how intentional you are with your words and your language
when you cover them, and that feels more needed than
ever before because we're in a time right now where
black female athletes are under the microscope often for displaying
the same Bravado as male athletes, only the black female
(22:45):
athletes are the ones who are heavily criticized for it.
So sure, what do you think the media is getting
wrong when it comes to covering athletes like Shakri Richardson
or Angel Reese or Kennedy Carter to be.
Speaker 4 (23:00):
A lot more thoughtful about that, because I'm not always
sure if it's just the media or if it is
the perception that we as a society have of black
women and how we expect them to act, how we
feel comfortable digesting them. I think it has equal parts
with how media portrays black women and equal parts with
(23:22):
how society accepts black women. And what I will say
to that is that I feel like there has been
a turn of the tide where the women who are
in the spotlight are not backing down and not allowing
anyone to paint their pictures for them, you know, like
Angel Reese specifically Shakarie Richardson. The way that they carry themselves,
(23:44):
the way that they show up one hundred percent authentically
without a care for what anyone wants them to be
or what feels digestible. I admire it so much because
it is very hard as a black woman to always
show up in every and be authentically yourself. There's just
no if ends or buts about that. And I remember
(24:05):
my own career always feeling like I had to say
all the right things, and it's like, you know, it's
like if you don't, you might miss out an opportunity.
And so I'm really proud of this new generation of
black women and Black girls who are owning all of
who they are and you can take it or leave it.
And I think that it's also helping society to see
that we are not a monolith. That black women show
(24:27):
up in all different kinds of ways, and that's okay.
We can own our confidence and however we want to
own it. We can be humble if we choose, We
can be loud, we can be self spoken.
Speaker 2 (24:38):
All of those things are acceptable. I love where we
are right now, but I think.
Speaker 4 (24:42):
That the burden of black women's perception falls on both sides,
the public as well as the media.
Speaker 1 (24:49):
Can you give us an example of a time when
you were competing where you felt like you had to
compromise a part of who you are as a black
woman or sanitize a part of who you are as
a black woman. To appe he is the mainstream. Did
you ever run up against that?
Speaker 2 (25:02):
I would just say it wasn't.
Speaker 4 (25:04):
I don't have like a specific example where I was like,
oh my god, i't feel like I'm being fully authentically myself,
but I certainly feel like there were guardrails and parameters
for which I operated in, and not just that that
was how black women showed up, but how Olympic athletes
showed up, how Team USA athletes showed up. You know,
were there times where they asked the question and I
(25:25):
had to answer the way that I thought was like.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
Yeah, I'm just excited to represent Team USA or.
Speaker 4 (25:30):
Something like that, And in my head, I'm like, this
is symbol like you know, like we know that athlete
is not clean, or you know, like things that I
feel like athletes say now without having any fears of repercussions.
So I would just say it was more about like
modeling what I had seen before in my own way.
Speaker 2 (25:48):
I don't think I was.
Speaker 4 (25:49):
Ever like disingenuous to myself, right, Like, this was probably
ninety nine percent of who I was, But there was
also parts of me that I didn't show because I
wasn't I was afraid that it might exclude me from
opportunities that came to Olympic athletes based on how positive we.
Speaker 2 (26:06):
Were and you know and all that kind of stuff.
Speaker 4 (26:07):
So I don't have a specific experience where I'm like, man,
I hated how I showed up in that space, or
I didn't feel like myself, But I certainly feel like
I always kind of you know, I knew this is this,
I should show up like this because this is what
people expect.
Speaker 2 (26:23):
From an Olympic champion.
Speaker 1 (26:25):
Oh, it's really interesting to hear you describe the difference
between the media climate back then and how there's more
freedom or at least these athletes are feeling more permission to.
Speaker 2 (26:35):
Show up absolutely, show up authentically.
Speaker 3 (26:39):
And the next generation of girls right, because I think
each generation paves the way for the next one to Yeah, yeah,
we have to take another short break, but we'll be
back in just a minute. Don't go anywhere, and we're back, Okay, Sonia,
(27:00):
I gotta talk real housewise. I'm the resident fan in
the house and you just announced that you are leaving.
You and og Candy are leaving. Why did you decide
to leave?
Speaker 2 (27:12):
It was mutual.
Speaker 4 (27:13):
Househards has been in a really sticky spot for a while, right,
Like they have an issue casting the show. I think
the fans have this nostalgia for the show where they
want it to be what it was before, and the
reality is that it will never be that way again.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
It is impossible. The same women can't come back.
Speaker 3 (27:32):
Right.
Speaker 4 (27:33):
Also, if they're casting the show, obviously the women who
are going to be coming in aren't going to be
friends of the old women in the same way that
they were before, right, So it causes a dynamic that
I think is disappointing for the fans. So whenever you
come in as a newbie, they already have like, oh.
Speaker 2 (27:50):
You know, like what is she doing?
Speaker 4 (27:52):
And so it sets a tone that's really hard to
kind of break into.
Speaker 2 (27:56):
And although I had the.
Speaker 4 (27:57):
Best intentions joining the show, I really wanted to show
black excellence and love and all the things that I am,
it was a really hard space to navigate with a
group of veteran women who know the ropes, who already
had established relationships. And so I never have regrets in life,
because I think everything teaches you something about yourself, prepares
(28:19):
you for the next thing. So I certainly don't regret it.
I felt like I learned a lot. It just wasn't
the right space for me. I wanted to try to
make it fit, but it just doesn't. It didn't feel
like a fit for me. And to be quite honest,
this season I can't film now, like this is my
very heavy season.
Speaker 2 (28:36):
Where I am traveling for track meets.
Speaker 4 (28:38):
I certainly was not going to miss the Olympics, and
so when you're filming the show, you have to be
one hundred percent committed.
Speaker 2 (28:44):
Weekends are dedicated to the show.
Speaker 4 (28:46):
It was a really tricky show to navigate, but I
still had fun, so all good.
Speaker 3 (28:51):
It was so funny, honestly for me to watch you
because you are so like highbrow and chill, and this
show is so high drama and sort of low brow.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
And I was like, this just doesn't fit.
Speaker 3 (29:05):
Like I felt like you must have felt so awkward
in all of these fights, and like it just it
was not It was not a Sonia thing.
Speaker 4 (29:13):
No, you're right, And I think what I learned in
that season of my life is that everything about my
personality and who I have become because of my athletic
prowess does not serve me now. And so for me
as the athlete, it's like oh housewives, Oh check, Like
you know I'm gonna get there, like check that box.
Like I can do it, you know, like I'll make
(29:33):
it work, I'll make it make sense. And it's like, Okay,
now I know that there are circumstances and situations and
opportunities that don't serve me, and it's okay, Like I
don't have to win every race. I don't have to
break every record anymore. I can do the things that
bring me joy and peace. And you know, as I
was navigating, like what is truly important to me and
how do I want to show up in the world
(29:54):
and all those things, family is the most important thing
to me, and so it just didn't fit all of
those things. Though I was well intentioned in join me,
I felt like, Okay, now I know I got to
start saying no to some things that just don't fit
all of who I am.
Speaker 1 (30:09):
We want to ask you about Momination. It's a multimedia
and virtual community that you created that supports black moms.
Speaker 2 (30:17):
Why do you love doing this work? Because it's necessary
and it's needed.
Speaker 4 (30:22):
When I became a mom, I wanted to be a
mom more than anything in the world.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
And it was still a very overwhelming role for me.
Speaker 4 (30:29):
I trained for the full hundred and it was harder
than that, and I was just like, wow, like, how
are moms doing this without support, without resources, without community?
And so we started the platform with twenty five black moms,
vibrant young moms, just kind of sharing their stories, and
it just blew up, like you know, like because women
(30:50):
wanted to feel seen and heard, and they wanted to
be in community, and they wanted to know that they
weren't alone on their motherhood journey. And it's been the
joy of my life to still do that now have
our mammin Nation Gives foundation where we raise money to
help moms. We've helped all sort of moms, but the
one that we've done the most working, where I feel
like we're having the most impact, is helping homeless moms
(31:11):
because I just cannot imagine having a child and not
having a place to go to at night. So that's
really our passion through Mammination Gives is to figure out
how we can help moms who have hit hard times
to like have a roof over their head, even if
it's temporary, for come for three four months while they
figure everything else out. So it's a huge passion of
mine because I am a mom and I just know
(31:32):
how hard it is, and I know for sure that
the one thing that we all can relate to as
mothers is that we want our kids to have the
best opportunities and the best life that they can and so,
you know, I want to help moms provide that for
their children.
Speaker 2 (31:45):
So that's why I started, and that's why I still
do it.
Speaker 3 (31:48):
Sonya. We talk so much about sport on this show,
and not in a professional way, but sport has given
Simon and I both so much. So I'm going to
ask you a really simple question. What has sport given
you in your life?
Speaker 2 (32:04):
Sport has given me everything. It's given me everything.
Speaker 4 (32:07):
It has given me an opportunity to see the world.
It's given me an opportunity to dream. It brought me
my husband, my scholarship to you, t is where I
met my husband.
Speaker 2 (32:19):
It's just given me so much.
Speaker 4 (32:21):
It's taught me so much about myself and what I'm
capable of. It has taught me so much about hard
work and resiliency and delayed gratification. I'm really grateful that
I had the opportunity to be a part of sport
and still do right in different ways.
Speaker 2 (32:37):
Sonya.
Speaker 1 (32:38):
It was so wonderful having you on our show. Thank
you so much for coming to the bright Side. Oh yeah,
and I just love you too. You guys are great.
Thank you so much for having me. This was a
great conversation.
Speaker 3 (32:51):
Thank you You're so real, Sonya. I love it.
Speaker 2 (32:54):
You know.
Speaker 4 (32:54):
I do what I could do when I could do it.
Speaker 1 (33:00):
Anya Richards Ross is one of the most decorated track
and Field Olympians of all time. She's an NBC sports
analyst and a former co star on the Real Housewives
of Atlanta. Her memoir is called Chasing Grace. What the
Quarter Mile has taught Me about God.
Speaker 3 (33:19):
That's it for today's show. Tomorrow, on the bright Side,
We're popping off with NBA Today host Malika Andrews all
about the week and pop culture, plus storylines from this
weekend's WNBA All Star Game. Listen and follow the bright
Side on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you
get your podcasts.
Speaker 2 (33:39):
I'm Simone Boye.
Speaker 1 (33:40):
You can find me at Simone Voice on Instagram and TikTok.
Speaker 3 (33:43):
I'm Danielle Robe on Instagram and TikTok. That's ro Ba y.
Speaker 2 (33:48):
See you tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (33:49):
Folks, keep looking on the bright side.
Hello Sunshine, Hey besties, Our bright Side Countdown to the
Olympics continues, and today we're super excited because our guest
is a record setting athlete and the second most decorated
women's track and Field Olympian of all time. Sonia Richards
Ross is an Olympic champion and commentator and you may
recognize her from the Real Housewives of Atlanta too.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
She's joining us today to talk resilience, what.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
It's like to compete at the highest level in the world,
and what she's most looking forward to this summer in Paris.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
It's Thursday, July eighteenth. I'm Simone Boyce and.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
I'm Danielle Robe. This is the bright Side from Hello Sunshine,
a daily show where we come together to share women's stories,
to laugh, learn and brighten your day.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
Danielle, our bright Side Countdown to the Olympics continues. We
are exactly a days from the start of the Paris Olympics,
which means we are exactly eight days from me clearing
my calendar so that I can just watch Olympics events
all the time. But truly, this season has got me
thinking about the precision and the pressure that these athletes
(01:11):
have to navigate as they're staring down the finish line.
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Oh yeah, especially for runners, sometimes it comes down to
a tenth or even a thousandth of a second. That's
what can separate an athlete from victory or heartbreak. In
the two thousand and four Athens Olympics women's two hundred
meters race, Veronica Campbell Brown won the gold with a
time of twenty two point zero five seconds, and Alison Felix, yeah,
(01:36):
we all know her. She finished second with a time
of twenty two point one eight seconds. The difference between
the top three finishers was less than a tenth of
a second.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
And then when we think about nineteen ninety two in Barcelona,
the women's one hundred meter sprint remains one of the
closest finishes in Olympic history. It was so close to you, guys,
slow motion footage was the only way to con firm
who won. In the end, Usay's Gail Devers took home
the gold after a painstaking waiting period for the results.
Speaker 3 (02:08):
The kind of fortitude and tenacity and just gusto that
it takes to work towards being one of the best
in the world when the margins are that small, especially
on days when things just don't go your way. Well,
to me, that requires not just physical strength, but mental
strength too.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Well. Our guest today knows what it's like to stare
at a finish line and grasp at every thousandth of
a second. Sonia richards Ross moved to America from Jamaica
when she was just twelve years old, and as a
little girl on the playground, she quickly learned she.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Was fast, real fast.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
She won a national title in women's track and field
when she was a senior in high school, and then
she made her Olympic debut. By the time she was
in college, She's won medals at the two thousand and four,
two thousand and eight, and twenty twelve Olympics, making her
the second most decorated women's track and field athlete of
all time.
Speaker 3 (03:02):
I'm just going to brag on her for a second.
She remains the only female athlete in history to win
the four hundred meter relay at three successive editions of
the Games. I know we're throwing so many numbers out there,
but TLDR impressive and this kind of success it did
not come without challenges. That's what I love about Sonia's story.
(03:23):
She's honest about it all. She was favored to win
the gold in two thousand and eight, and she landed
with the bronze, and then, after an incredible comeback in
twenty twelve, a foot injury prevented her from competing again
and it forced her to re examine her life without
the title of athlete, and since then, she's gone on
to become a sports analyst for NBC covering the Olympics.
(03:47):
She published a memoir in twenty seventeen called Chasing Grace
What the Quarter Mile has taught Me about God and life.
And she made her debut on the Real Housewives of
Atlanta just a few years ago. I know I was
tuning in, but she is leaving the show, so I
have to ask her about that.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
At the heart of all these accomplishments is her resilience,
her champions mindset, and her multitudes that shine both on
and off the track. So let's bring her in now, Sonya.
Welcome to the bright Side. Oh yeah, I'm excited. Thanks
for having me, Sonya. We are only a couple weeks
away from this summer's Olympic Games in Paris, and you
(04:25):
will be attending and covering as an NBC commentator, Who
are you going to be watching on the track this
year in Paris?
Speaker 2 (04:32):
Give us your expert preview?
Speaker 4 (04:35):
Oh Man, So you know, I don't think I'm exaggerating
when I say that this may be the deepest team
of superstar athletes that I've ever seen on the track.
We start with Shakarie Richardson and the women's hundred. There's
Sidney McLaughlin, Lavoni and the foreigner hurdles, Noah Lyles, Rye Benjamin.
(04:57):
The list just goes on and on and on with
so much talent on the track, and they're gonna be
going up against some incredible competition with athletes all over
the world. So it's just literally every day that there
is a track me on, You're gonna want to watch
it because there's gonna be somebody to watch, somebody, the
great story, Tara Davis Woodhall in the long jump. There's
(05:19):
just so much to be excited about. And I get
to be front row in Paris. I can't wait.
Speaker 1 (05:25):
We are so excited for you. There are so many
eyes on Shikari Richardson this year. I mean, she is
competing in the Olympics after missing out on Tokyo because
she tested positive for marijuana, and in her word she says,
I'm not back, I'm better, And she does seem different.
I mean, she's showing up even more authentic than she
was before. Like she's traded in the wigs for braids,
(05:48):
she's still rocking that fire manny all the time. How
would you describe the legacy that Shakerrie is creating for
herself as we speak.
Speaker 4 (05:57):
I would say it is absolutely beautiful to see all
that Sha Carrie has been through as an athlete, as
a young woman. To see her maturing right in front
of our eyes has been a treat to watch. She's
also been authentic in how she expresses how much she's growing,
(06:18):
how much it matters to her that she shows up
and represents, especially for black women. And so I can't
imagine what it was like for Sha CAIRI when she
first burst.
Speaker 2 (06:26):
Onto the scene.
Speaker 4 (06:28):
We'd never seen an athlete have that much of an
impact so quickly in our sport, and so that was
a heavy load for her to Carrie. And then of
course the disappointment was not going to her first Olympics,
and there was just so much and I felt like.
Speaker 2 (06:41):
She was fighting for her life.
Speaker 4 (06:43):
But now I think she's settled into her role as
the face of the sport. She's not fighting, she's just
going with the flow of competition.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
She just seems happier, more mature and men.
Speaker 4 (06:53):
It was really fun to watch her make the team
and now lead Team USA to Paris.
Speaker 3 (06:58):
I love hearing you talk about all these superstar female athletes,
but we can't sleep on the fact that we have
gold medalists Sonya Ross in the house. So I want
to back up a little bit and talk about your
journey because you grew up in Jamaica and you started
running at seven years old. To me, that sounds like
(07:18):
you basically started running when you were walking, like this
was just for you. So when did you know you
wanted to be an Olympian from.
Speaker 2 (07:25):
The very beginning?
Speaker 4 (07:25):
You know, being born in Kingston, Jamaica, track and field
is by far the most popular sport, and so I
remember the country shutting down to watch Merlin Atti and
some of the greats from Jamaica, and I was like,
oh my god, I want that to be be one day,
Like I want people sharing for me and rooting for me.
And I was lucky that when I was seven I
(07:47):
went out for like we had like a fun day
at school, and I beat all the boys and all
the girls, and the coach Sawda had the gift of speed,
you know. And I'm so grateful for all the coaches
and of course my family that poured into me and
allowed me to live this dream. I said when I
was nine for my class assignment, I was gonna be
an Olympic champion.
Speaker 2 (08:05):
And I did it.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
I guess you did, Sonya. You are a gold medalist,
but that road to gold was challenging. I think back
to two thousand and eight when you were favored in
the Olympics that year to win gold, but you wound
up taking home the bronze. I have no business even
asking you about this because I have never even set
foot onto an Olympic track. But what did that experience
(08:30):
teach you about resilience, about bouncing back from life setbacks.
Speaker 2 (08:36):
It taught me everything.
Speaker 4 (08:38):
It taught me everything, And in the moment I hated it,
I thought I was gonna die.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
I thought it was the worst thing that could ever happen.
Speaker 4 (08:46):
But you know now, you know, looking back on that experience,
I'm so grateful because now I am not afraid to fail,
you know, And I truly believe that failure is an
important part of our journey to success. I think more
people are afraid to fail than they are to succeed,
and that's what holds a lot of people back from
(09:07):
really living in their purpose. And so for me, having
experienced that failure on the grandest scale and realizing that
the sun came up the next morning, my heart was
still beating. Everybody that loves me was still there supporting
me and loving on me.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
It made me realize that I can rebound from anything.
Speaker 4 (09:25):
And the truth is, when you set your sights on
something so epic, you might fail. But it made me
appreciate twenty twelve so much more. I worked my butt
off to stand on that track again and to realize
that dream. And you know, I always say I felt
like I ran into my fairy tale ending.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
You did run into your fairy tale ending, because you
ended up winning gold in the twenty twelve Games in London.
I looked up photos of that moment, and you're on
that podium, You're representing Team USA, you have thousands of
people cheering for you, the music is playing, and you know,
I think they're all excited because you.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
Brought it home.
Speaker 3 (10:08):
For the US. But I can only imagine what that
moment means to you, because you're the one that knows
all of the heartache and the sacrifice that it took
to get to that moment. So what's going through your
mind when you're standing up there being award of this medal.
Speaker 4 (10:24):
It's such a good question, and every time I'm asked
that question, Danielle, I try to figure out how to
put it into words.
Speaker 2 (10:31):
Yeah, it is almost impossible.
Speaker 4 (10:33):
It is literally the greatest feeling in the world, because,
like you said, you know all the hard work that
it took to get there, you know all the people
that poured into you, all the sacrifices, everything that you
had to overcome mentally, physically to be there. And it
is true when you're on the podium and the national
anthem is playing, kind of your life kind of flashes
(10:55):
before your eyes, right. You think about childhood, and you
think about the highs and the lows, and think about
the thousand sit ups and all the rest and the
ice bass and just everything that you did, and you
just kind of wish they would just loop the anthem, like,
I need more time.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
I earned about two of these running back.
Speaker 3 (11:13):
Did anybody's face come into your mind or was it
mostly memories of you?
Speaker 4 (11:19):
Oh no, I mean by far my family, like my
mom and dad. I don't like to say I made
sacrifices because I always think that I made an investment
in my future. But when I think of my family,
I don't want to get emotional. They made sacrifices, you know,
like my mom and dad moved to the States for
us to have the opportunity. My mom turned her garage
(11:41):
into a gym. She learned to become a trainer so
that she could be my first strength coach. My dad
literally moved to Waco and came to all of my practices,
didn't miss a practice when I was in high school.
Speaker 2 (11:50):
And they did all of.
Speaker 4 (11:51):
This just for me, Like my coach Bruce Johnson, who
was with me since college and would drive to Waco
every day sixty miles to come to my practices, my
physio who was from Switzerland who moved in to my
home in Austin to be with me during the season.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
I mean, it was just countless people.
Speaker 4 (12:06):
My sister who didn't misattract me, you know, would come
on her own dime, and just my aunts. It was
less about me, and really more about all of them
because I just knew how proud they were, and it
was really a moment for all of us.
Speaker 3 (12:20):
I watched a few episodes of Real Housewives of Atlanta
while you were on it, and hearing you talk about this,
I understand your family dynamic even more because your parents, like,
we're living with you for a little bit, Like you
guys are really tight knit.
Speaker 4 (12:34):
Yeah, no, my family, they've always meant everything to me.
After the pandemic, so we all had three houses in
Texas and then we were always at my mom's house
because of course, you know, you weren't able to be
around other people. So we kind of were doing life together.
And when I decided to move to Atlanta, I was like,
you guys have to come and we'll just get one
big house. We were doing it anyway when we were
in Austin, and so it was fun, like, you know,
(12:57):
that was my real life. And a lot of people
are like, oh my god, I've never lived my parents.
But our love runs deep and we support each other
in every way that we can. And although we're not
living together anymore, you know, we still obviously had this
incredible bond and I you know, I appreciate them with
all that I am.
Speaker 3 (13:15):
You could feel that in the show, Yeah, thank you, Sonya.
Speaker 1 (13:19):
We've talked to a few Olympians on our show, and
each one of them mentions the sacrifices that go unseen,
the sacrifices of family members behind the scenes, and particularly
in your sport, there's something so symbolic about the finish line,
Like I am imagining you and all of your family members,
like your whole tribe, crossing that finish line each time. Yeah,
(13:43):
And I wonder if that finish line was as symbolic
for you as it is for all of us watching
at home. Was there something that you envisioned that was
waiting for you on the other side of the finish line.
Was the feeling the same every time that you crossed it,
or was it a different emotion each day?
Speaker 2 (14:00):
That is such a good question.
Speaker 4 (14:03):
In the four hundred, only in the four hundred the
finish line and the start line are at the same
point on the track. And I always thought that was
so significant because I always feel like there are no
finish lines, you know what I mean. It's like we're
constantly having the opportunity to do it again, to start over.
Speaker 2 (14:23):
To like relive the dream, you know.
Speaker 4 (14:25):
And so it's funny that you say that, because on
the end of every start line for me, was an
opportunity to do it again, was an opportunity to dream bigger.
It was like, was this always the springboard kind of
springing me forward? Like even when I ran through the
finish line in London and I lived this dream, it
was like, Okay, what's next. When my career transitioned, it's like, hey,
(14:46):
there's no finish line. Like, I'm just gonna keep going.
I'm gonna keep winning. I always tell people I don't
think greatness is fleeting. I think it lives in us.
And when you've achieved greatness in one area of your life,
you can do it again if you apply yourself. And
so I love that question because I think a lot
of times people think of things like this solid thing,
you cross this finish line, and it's like you're expecting
some magical thing or this thing is over. It's like, no,
(15:08):
it's like track and Field was a springboard. I learned
so much that I'm taking it to the next thing.
I'm running through this finish line to get to the
next start line.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
You know, you just.
Speaker 1 (15:15):
Gave me a whole new visual language to describe pivoting. Yeah,
I mean, I'm I truly like, I'm going to think
about pivoting differently, Like there is no finish line, it's
just a new star every time, it's a new star.
Speaker 2 (15:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (15:31):
When I think about this success or quote unquote failure,
even though I hate that word of a track athlete,
it's just based on seconds, sometimes tenths of seconds. It's
so nicecule is it really?
Speaker 2 (15:46):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (15:47):
Thousandths, No, it can be. It could go down to thousands. No,
your point is well made. I mean people lose back
thousands of a second. People miss the Olympic team by
thousandths of a second. Like it's yeah, it's to your point,
it is, you know, it could be that specific and
that minute.
Speaker 3 (16:02):
When I think of the personality type that it takes
to be a part of that sport, there's obviously so
much resilience, there's I think a healthy ego in a
great way, and there's this wanting of wanting to like
the wanting to be the best in the world. Yeah,
(16:23):
where did that come from for you? Like, why did
you want to be the best in the world?
Speaker 4 (16:27):
I would say from two places I would say one,
I always had like an internal drive and I still do,
like I'm so motivated to always be my best, like
it's just a natural gift, it's my superpower. But I
would also say that my dad, since I was about
nine years old, told me.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
You want to be the best in the world. You
want to be the best in the world. And he
said it so much.
Speaker 4 (16:49):
I tell people he made me believe it before I
understood what that really meant, before I understood that we
could quantify that and that it was possible. My dad
told me for years, you are going to be a
world beater.
Speaker 2 (17:01):
You're going to be the best.
Speaker 4 (17:02):
I just credit him so much for doing that for me,
for seeing greatness in me at such a young age.
And then I feel like that really bolstered me to
help me to believe it was possible.
Speaker 2 (17:12):
And I do that for my kids too.
Speaker 1 (17:14):
You know.
Speaker 4 (17:14):
It's like we have an opportunity to be that positive
voice in people's lives, especially those of our children, and
my dad was that for me, and I hope to
be that for my kids as well.
Speaker 3 (17:25):
Do you have a tool that you use for your
mental toughness?
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (17:30):
So, you know, I actually after two thousand and eight,
I started working with a sports psychologist. It's the only
regret of my career is not working with a sports psychologist. Sooner, Yeah,
every person. I talked to him like, we have a
strength coach, we have a track coach, and you have
to have a mind coach, because at the highest level
it's no longer about physical Everybody there is physically gifted
and talented and the best in the world, but it's
(17:51):
who can be mentally strong and tough enough and in
the moment, who executes the best who's gonna win. I
learned a lot from him in the final few years
of my career that I still use to this day.
There are two skills I'll share with you. One is
how to go into emotional neutral. And what that means
is that a lot of times in our lives we
(18:11):
get so worked up about stuff that haven't even happened yet. Right,
A lot of the stress we feel is about worry
about something we think is going to happen, and it
causes us so much unnecessary stress.
Speaker 2 (18:22):
And so he taught me emotional neutral. So if I
don't know.
Speaker 4 (18:25):
What's going to happen and I just don't have any
feelings about it like it's just I'll just wait until
if the worst happens, I'll react to it then, but
I'm not going to get myself all worked up about
something that hasn't happened yet. That really helps me to
keep an even mind so that I'm clear for what
is going to happen, for like what is in front
of me. The second thing he taught me was like
a physical practice. But a lot of times when we
(18:46):
get really nervous and stuff and our mind is racing heart,
we're breathing fast. If you put your hand on the
bottom of your belly and you breathe into your hand,
there is a grounding that happens to you that helps
you to become very present in the moment so that
you can now heighten your senses and awareness around what
it is that you need to do, whether it's compete
at the highest level on the track, give a speech,
(19:07):
whatever it is. It really helps to ground you when
you connect to your breath in that way, because I
think what happens is where most of the time.
Speaker 2 (19:12):
We're prepared right like we've done the work, we're ready
to go.
Speaker 4 (19:15):
It's just that we're not able to be present in
the moment to show up in the way we have
seen ourselves. We have planned for it, we just you know,
bomb it because we're not present. So those are the
two things that I do to really help myself be
present so that I can use the fullness of my
mental capacity and my skill sets to show up holy
and authentically myself.
Speaker 3 (19:35):
Thank you for passing those on.
Speaker 2 (19:36):
It's so good.
Speaker 3 (19:37):
Of course, we need to take a quick break, but
we'll be right back. Stay with us and we're back.
So you are going to be live in Paris at
(19:59):
the Olympics because you have been in these athletes shoes. Literally,
are you easier or tougher on them on air?
Speaker 2 (20:07):
Oh?
Speaker 4 (20:07):
Easier, way easier. So I've taken it on as my duty.
I care about what I say because I know that
athletes are listening, and so as much as obviously I'm
unbiased and I'm going to speak to what I see,
I'm very careful with my words. And that was that's
(20:28):
on purpose because when I was competing sometimes I felt
like the commentators would harp on she was the bronze
medalist and she you know, she was favored to win gold,
and she was like, tell the folks the good stuff like,
you don't have to always lead with the negative. And
so for me, what I hope to do, and especially
with an audience as big as what we get for
the Olympics, is for them to feel our passion for
(20:51):
the sport, for them to fall in love with the
people that they're watching, and to understand how incredible their
performances are.
Speaker 2 (20:58):
And so that's what I want to do. I want
to illuminate how hard it.
Speaker 4 (21:00):
Is for them to get here, what they're experiencing in
the village, what it's like when they're back there warming up,
when they're being held in the call room, that that
thirty ways before the race with their competition. You know,
that's what I like. I like making it feel like
the people watching aren't there and they can truly appreciate
the performances. And so I would say, you know, lighter
(21:22):
on there. I try not to be too tough.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
You know, a few years ago I interviewed Peyton Manning
and he told me that SNL was way more nerve
racking than the Super Bowl. But he meant it like
I could tell he meant it for you, is commentating
more nerve racking or performing and competing in the Olympics.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
No, Definitely, competing was way more nerve wracking for me.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
But I understand what he's saying, because the sentiment is
the thing that comes more naturally to you will feel
easier than something that somebody else thinks is would would
be easier. I wish sometimes I didn't put so much
pressure on myself to compete, like I wish I was
able to be in the mind space that I was
from about two thousand and eight and beyond, where I
was having fun and it wasn't.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
I didn't make myself.
Speaker 4 (22:09):
Always feel like the weight of the world was on
my shoulders, And certainly because of those skills that I
learned in the latter part of my career, I carry
that over to what I do now. So it was
definitely much tougher on the check than it has been
being in the booth.
Speaker 1 (22:23):
Well, the athletes that you cover are so lucky to
have you in the booth because you just spoke about
how intentional you are with your words and your language
when you cover them, and that feels more needed than
ever before because we're in a time right now where
black female athletes are under the microscope often for displaying
the same Bravado as male athletes, only the black female
(22:45):
athletes are the ones who are heavily criticized for it.
So sure, what do you think the media is getting
wrong when it comes to covering athletes like Shakri Richardson
or Angel Reese or Kennedy Carter to be.
Speaker 4 (23:00):
A lot more thoughtful about that, because I'm not always
sure if it's just the media or if it is
the perception that we as a society have of black
women and how we expect them to act, how we
feel comfortable digesting them. I think it has equal parts
with how media portrays black women and equal parts with
(23:22):
how society accepts black women. And what I will say
to that is that I feel like there has been
a turn of the tide where the women who are
in the spotlight are not backing down and not allowing
anyone to paint their pictures for them, you know, like
Angel Reese specifically Shakarie Richardson. The way that they carry themselves,
(23:44):
the way that they show up one hundred percent authentically
without a care for what anyone wants them to be
or what feels digestible. I admire it so much because
it is very hard as a black woman to always
show up in every and be authentically yourself. There's just
no if ends or buts about that. And I remember
(24:05):
my own career always feeling like I had to say
all the right things, and it's like, you know, it's
like if you don't, you might miss out an opportunity.
And so I'm really proud of this new generation of
black women and Black girls who are owning all of
who they are and you can take it or leave it.
And I think that it's also helping society to see
that we are not a monolith. That black women show
(24:27):
up in all different kinds of ways, and that's okay.
We can own our confidence and however we want to
own it. We can be humble if we choose, We
can be loud, we can be self spoken.
Speaker 2 (24:38):
All of those things are acceptable. I love where we
are right now, but I think.
Speaker 4 (24:42):
That the burden of black women's perception falls on both sides,
the public as well as the media.
Speaker 1 (24:49):
Can you give us an example of a time when
you were competing where you felt like you had to
compromise a part of who you are as a black
woman or sanitize a part of who you are as
a black woman. To appe he is the mainstream. Did
you ever run up against that?
Speaker 2 (25:02):
I would just say it wasn't.
Speaker 4 (25:04):
I don't have like a specific example where I was like,
oh my god, i't feel like I'm being fully authentically myself,
but I certainly feel like there were guardrails and parameters
for which I operated in, and not just that that
was how black women showed up, but how Olympic athletes
showed up, how Team USA athletes showed up. You know,
were there times where they asked the question and I
(25:25):
had to answer the way that I thought was like.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
Yeah, I'm just excited to represent Team USA or.
Speaker 4 (25:30):
Something like that, And in my head, I'm like, this
is symbol like you know, like we know that athlete
is not clean, or you know, like things that I
feel like athletes say now without having any fears of repercussions.
So I would just say it was more about like
modeling what I had seen before in my own way.
Speaker 2 (25:48):
I don't think I was.
Speaker 4 (25:49):
Ever like disingenuous to myself, right, Like, this was probably
ninety nine percent of who I was, But there was
also parts of me that I didn't show because I
wasn't I was afraid that it might exclude me from
opportunities that came to Olympic athletes based on how positive we.
Speaker 2 (26:06):
Were and you know and all that kind of stuff.
Speaker 4 (26:07):
So I don't have a specific experience where I'm like, man,
I hated how I showed up in that space, or
I didn't feel like myself, But I certainly feel like
I always kind of you know, I knew this is this,
I should show up like this because this is what
people expect.
Speaker 2 (26:23):
From an Olympic champion.
Speaker 1 (26:25):
Oh, it's really interesting to hear you describe the difference
between the media climate back then and how there's more
freedom or at least these athletes are feeling more permission to.
Speaker 2 (26:35):
Show up absolutely, show up authentically.
Speaker 3 (26:39):
And the next generation of girls right, because I think
each generation paves the way for the next one to Yeah, yeah,
we have to take another short break, but we'll be
back in just a minute. Don't go anywhere, and we're back, Okay, Sonia,
(27:00):
I gotta talk real housewise. I'm the resident fan in
the house and you just announced that you are leaving.
You and og Candy are leaving. Why did you decide
to leave?
Speaker 2 (27:12):
It was mutual.
Speaker 4 (27:13):
Househards has been in a really sticky spot for a while, right,
Like they have an issue casting the show. I think
the fans have this nostalgia for the show where they
want it to be what it was before, and the
reality is that it will never be that way again.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
It is impossible. The same women can't come back.
Speaker 3 (27:32):
Right.
Speaker 4 (27:33):
Also, if they're casting the show, obviously the women who
are going to be coming in aren't going to be
friends of the old women in the same way that
they were before, right, So it causes a dynamic that
I think is disappointing for the fans. So whenever you
come in as a newbie, they already have like, oh.
Speaker 2 (27:50):
You know, like what is she doing?
Speaker 4 (27:52):
And so it sets a tone that's really hard to
kind of break into.
Speaker 2 (27:56):
And although I had the.
Speaker 4 (27:57):
Best intentions joining the show, I really wanted to show
black excellence and love and all the things that I am,
it was a really hard space to navigate with a
group of veteran women who know the ropes, who already
had established relationships. And so I never have regrets in life,
because I think everything teaches you something about yourself, prepares
(28:19):
you for the next thing. So I certainly don't regret it.
I felt like I learned a lot. It just wasn't
the right space for me. I wanted to try to
make it fit, but it just doesn't. It didn't feel
like a fit for me. And to be quite honest,
this season I can't film now, like this is my
very heavy season.
Speaker 2 (28:36):
Where I am traveling for track meets.
Speaker 4 (28:38):
I certainly was not going to miss the Olympics, and
so when you're filming the show, you have to be
one hundred percent committed.
Speaker 2 (28:44):
Weekends are dedicated to the show.
Speaker 4 (28:46):
It was a really tricky show to navigate, but I
still had fun, so all good.
Speaker 3 (28:51):
It was so funny, honestly for me to watch you
because you are so like highbrow and chill, and this
show is so high drama and sort of low brow.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
And I was like, this just doesn't fit.
Speaker 3 (29:05):
Like I felt like you must have felt so awkward
in all of these fights, and like it just it
was not It was not a Sonia thing.
Speaker 4 (29:13):
No, you're right, And I think what I learned in
that season of my life is that everything about my
personality and who I have become because of my athletic
prowess does not serve me now. And so for me
as the athlete, it's like oh housewives, Oh check, Like
you know I'm gonna get there, like check that box.
Like I can do it, you know, like I'll make
(29:33):
it work, I'll make it make sense. And it's like, Okay,
now I know that there are circumstances and situations and
opportunities that don't serve me, and it's okay, Like I
don't have to win every race. I don't have to
break every record anymore. I can do the things that
bring me joy and peace. And you know, as I
was navigating, like what is truly important to me and
how do I want to show up in the world
(29:54):
and all those things, family is the most important thing
to me, and so it just didn't fit all of
those things. Though I was well intentioned in join me,
I felt like, Okay, now I know I got to
start saying no to some things that just don't fit
all of who I am.
Speaker 1 (30:09):
We want to ask you about Momination. It's a multimedia
and virtual community that you created that supports black moms.
Speaker 2 (30:17):
Why do you love doing this work? Because it's necessary
and it's needed.
Speaker 4 (30:22):
When I became a mom, I wanted to be a
mom more than anything in the world.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
And it was still a very overwhelming role for me.
Speaker 4 (30:29):
I trained for the full hundred and it was harder
than that, and I was just like, wow, like, how
are moms doing this without support, without resources, without community?
And so we started the platform with twenty five black moms,
vibrant young moms, just kind of sharing their stories, and
it just blew up, like you know, like because women
(30:50):
wanted to feel seen and heard, and they wanted to
be in community, and they wanted to know that they
weren't alone on their motherhood journey. And it's been the
joy of my life to still do that now have
our mammin Nation Gives foundation where we raise money to
help moms. We've helped all sort of moms, but the
one that we've done the most working, where I feel
like we're having the most impact, is helping homeless moms
(31:11):
because I just cannot imagine having a child and not
having a place to go to at night. So that's
really our passion through Mammination Gives is to figure out
how we can help moms who have hit hard times
to like have a roof over their head, even if
it's temporary, for come for three four months while they
figure everything else out. So it's a huge passion of
mine because I am a mom and I just know
(31:32):
how hard it is, and I know for sure that
the one thing that we all can relate to as
mothers is that we want our kids to have the
best opportunities and the best life that they can and so,
you know, I want to help moms provide that for
their children.
Speaker 2 (31:45):
So that's why I started, and that's why I still
do it.
Speaker 3 (31:48):
Sonya. We talk so much about sport on this show,
and not in a professional way, but sport has given
Simon and I both so much. So I'm going to
ask you a really simple question. What has sport given
you in your life?
Speaker 2 (32:04):
Sport has given me everything. It's given me everything.
Speaker 4 (32:07):
It has given me an opportunity to see the world.
It's given me an opportunity to dream. It brought me
my husband, my scholarship to you, t is where I
met my husband.
Speaker 2 (32:19):
It's just given me so much.
Speaker 4 (32:21):
It's taught me so much about myself and what I'm
capable of. It has taught me so much about hard
work and resiliency and delayed gratification. I'm really grateful that
I had the opportunity to be a part of sport
and still do right in different ways.
Speaker 2 (32:37):
Sonya.
Speaker 1 (32:38):
It was so wonderful having you on our show. Thank
you so much for coming to the bright Side. Oh yeah,
and I just love you too. You guys are great.
Thank you so much for having me. This was a
great conversation.
Speaker 3 (32:51):
Thank you You're so real, Sonya. I love it.
Speaker 2 (32:54):
You know.
Speaker 4 (32:54):
I do what I could do when I could do it.
Speaker 1 (33:00):
Anya Richards Ross is one of the most decorated track
and Field Olympians of all time. She's an NBC sports
analyst and a former co star on the Real Housewives
of Atlanta. Her memoir is called Chasing Grace. What the
Quarter Mile has taught Me about God.
Speaker 3 (33:19):
That's it for today's show. Tomorrow, on the bright Side,
We're popping off with NBA Today host Malika Andrews all
about the week and pop culture, plus storylines from this
weekend's WNBA All Star Game. Listen and follow the bright
Side on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you
get your podcasts.
Speaker 2 (33:39):
I'm Simone Boye.
Speaker 1 (33:40):
You can find me at Simone Voice on Instagram and TikTok.
Speaker 3 (33:43):
I'm Danielle Robe on Instagram and TikTok. That's ro Ba y.
Speaker 2 (33:48):
See you tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (33:49):
Folks, keep looking on the bright side.
Hosts And Creators
Simone Boyce
Danielle Robay
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