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As Track And Field athletes prepare their mark and get set to run for the gold in Tokyo, six-time Olympic medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee connects with I SEE U from her native East St. Louis to observe this weekend’s competitive rounds. At the Seoul Summer Olympics in 1988, she became the first woman to win back-to-back gold medals in the grueling heptathlon event, as well as the first African-American woman to win an Olympic medal in the long jump. Founder and CEO of the Jackie Joyner-Kersee Foundation, she speaks unguarded with host Eddie Robinson about racist incidents she experienced while competing; what makes the city of Houston so special to her; and tips on how to stay mentally focused — as Olympians in Tokyo and as adults here in the United States, grapple with pandemic-related stress amid heightened concerns over coronavirus variants.
