Vegans Of The Olympics
The Olympics: the battlegrounds of some of the godliest strong, fast, agile and so much more people in the world. This is the proving grounds of those who tower above all the rest and they have been doing so with one target in mind – gold. Yet even among those who are doing their best in the Rio Olympics, it is not a surprise to see a vegan or two among them. I am proud to know that there are quite a few role models out there to show how being a vegan can not only allow you to do great things, it helps you achieve amazing results as well. I am now happy to share with you the list of vegan athletes who are competing in the Rio Olympics today and even those who competed in earlier Olympics as well.
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Kendrick Farris – The only sole entrant to America’s weightlifter competition in the Rio Olympics is a proud vegan. The towering behemoth of a man, is so passionate about his family, his health and being a vegan, it is a wonder how one of the most powerful people in the world can continue to do his sport while being a vegan, but that just goes to show that if you take care of your body, it will do many great things. Farris continues on to share how he wants to be more than an inspiration in nutrition wise and would love to be a shining example about being a strong family, having good faith and how anyone can be anything they want to be. He is a shining example and one that I hope a lot of people will soon follow.
Carl Lewis – Perhaps one of the most famous vegan track and field stars there ever was. In 1991 Lewis had changed his diet from becoming a vegetarian to a vegan and went on to have one of the most stellar years of his career. He continues to be a great example to all vegan people and is still a hall of famer in my books, I hope that his words written in an introduction to Jannequin Bennett’s book “Very Vegetarian”, continues to echo through the generations. Lewis writes: “It’s a myth that muscles, strength, and endurance require the consumption of large quantities of animal-based foods.” Striking a note in all of us, vegan or otherwise and I can only pray that it reaches the ears of other athletes in the Rio Olympics as well.
Venus Williams – The tennis superstar is indeed a vegan and is proudly participating in the Rio Olympics as well. Williams is another shining example of becoming a vegan, where she is doing it for health reasons and to get an edge on her competition, as reports say. She has been a vegan for about 2 or 3 years and is an outspoken advocate who continues to inspire more people to become vegan. I salute her and wish her nothing but the best for the Rio Olympics.
Ronda Rousey – The MMA superstar has had her bouts with becoming a vegan, in fact after her stint in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she turned towards becoming a vegan. As most of you know, she continued on to become one of the most talked about female MMA stars in the UFC and continues to be a mainstay to this day. Although she is not participating in the Rio Olympics, I am hopeful that her experience as a vegan will resonate with a lot of people and continue to further the cause.
Cam Awesome – A USA boxing representative in the Rio Olympics has been confirmed to be a proud vegan. He has been a vegan for over 4 years now and continues to be a strong advocate for the lifestyle and beliefs of becoming a vegan. Quite a few people are surprised that a boxer can continue the vegan lifestyle considering the power and endurance you need for boxing however that’s exactly what a vegan diet and lifestyle will give you if you really know about it and Awesome believes that and shares that perspective.
Meagan Duhamel – The figure skater who participated in the Sochi Olympics, is another vegan on the list of Olympic athletes. Although she is not participating in the Rio Olympics, Duhamel shared that she tried becoming a vegan to work her way up to the 2010 Olympics but she liked it so much that she continued the diet and lifestyle for much longer than that. The silver medalist simply read a book about being a vegan and opted to choose the lifestyle, leaving such an impression on her she continued to do so, isn’t that just a great story?
Murray Rose – The Australian swimmer who won four, count it, four gold medals and was poised to win more if he wasn’t banned from the Tokyo Olympics for missing the Australian championship. In his passing in 2012, he was remembered as a person who did the unconventional diet at a time when eating meat was the norm and at the time he was doing his diet, people would fairly be in awe of it. He was known for his uncontested skill as a swimmer and his vegan lifestyle, in fact his nickname was known as “The Seaweed Streak.”
Alexey Voevoda – The Russian bobsledder and professional arm wrestler, quite a stark contrast I believe is a proud vegan as well. Although not participating in the Rio Olympics he won two gold medals in the Sochi Olympics a few years back. He initially started the vegan diet as getting healthier and how it would improve his body, however as he stayed on the diet he realized that he was happy and he loved animals, so he continued the diet and gained the views of the lifestyle as well. It is good that he also shared some of his words with PETA UK in 2014, saying how he is a happy vegan and how he continues on with the lifestyle, I hope his shining example and vegan outlook continues to encourage others to join in.
Morgan Mitchell – The Australian sprinter who is part of the Rio Olympics is a vegan and continues to be a shining example to a lot of us. Perhaps one of the fastest sprinters in the world, Mitchell attributes her speed and energy to the vegan diet. She has been a vegan for a year and a half already and that really changed her in so many ways, aside from being stronger, faster, and even more energized, she has really received a better outlook in life and she loves how her choice is helping the environment.
There you have it, some current Rio Olympics athletes and past Olympic athletes who were or still are vegan. Allow this to really throw off the impression that vegan people are weak and are hampered by the lifestyle and diet choice, this shows that any vegan can become anything they want to be while helping the environment. I really believe that these will not be the last vegans we will hear of in the Olympics and I can only look forward to hearing more wonderful things about them. Stay healthy!
