From Wright to Viv, they were the black superstars
LONDON. — Who is your black sporting hero?
Who is the sportsperson who first meant everything to you, brought you boundless joy, conquered the world and changed your life in the process?
To kick off Black History Month, we asked BBC Sport staff who their personal hero is, who helped shape their identity, who made them fall in love with sport.
Ian Wright — by Nesta McGregor
“As a child, Ian Wright had a profound impact on me. As an adult, nothing has changed.
“Back then it was the gold tooth, the Bogle dance goal celebration and the way he strolled around a pitch. Today it’s the way he continues to use his voice to speak out against all forms of discrimination.
“Arsenal legend. England international. Unashamedly black.
“He looked, sounded and behaved like people I was surrounded by growing up in south-east London. If Ian could make it, so could any of us.
“Although my dreams of becoming a professional footballer didn’t pan out (Dulwich Hamlet’s reserve team is the closest I got), now being employed to report on the sport isn’t a bad back-up.
“My life and Wrighty’s life have some uncanny parallels. I share the same name with his mother (yes, Nesta) and I played in the same youth team as his son Shaun Wright-Phillips. As a child I played for Ten Em Bee FC — the same team where Wrighty got his start.
“My grandmother always used to say don’t place flowers on her grave, she wanted them while she was alive so she could smell them. So Wrighty — thank you — here’s a big bunch of whatever your favourite blossoms are — take a sniff !’’
Sir Viv Richards — by Stephen Lyle
“Growing up in the ‘80s, black excellence was underexposed but there was no hiding the West Indies cricket team, or Viv Richards.
“I’d watch him walk out to face the fastest bowlers with no helmet, chewing gum, ready to entertain. Then he would dominate, but in such a way that even his opponents would love him for it.
“Viv showed us black kids that we too could be the best and do it our way.
“He was also fiercely proud of his black roots, sporting red, gold and green sweatbands on the pitch.
“I had the honour of meeting Viv once and he told me that turning down a fortune to play cricket in apartheid South Africa was the greatest thing he did in his career. Hero, legend, GOAT.’’
John Barnes — by Nelson Kumah
“My life can probably be divided into two distinct parts — life before Barnes, and life after.
“His ascendance to the top of English football with Liverpool in the late ‘80s coincided perfectly with my own coming-of-age.
“My musical tastes upgraded to Public Enemy, and now was the time to dispense with my dad’s footballing heroes and claim one of my very own.
“Liverpool’s title-winning team of 1988 will never be bettered in my eyes. And Barnes was the heartbeat of that side.
“He showed me that football could be an art, that black people could stand up to racism, but most of all he showed me that black people could be the absolute best.
“More than 30 years later, I still feel the same about that man. He changed me. He changed everything.’’