Team USA's Lauren Scruggs on taking silver in fencing and making Olympic history
Lauren Scruggs, from Queens, New York, became the first Black American woman and the first Black out lesbian to win an individual fencing medal.
American Lauren Scruggs made history at the Paris Olympics on Sunday when she took the silver medal in women’s foil fencing.
Scruggs, from Queens, New York, became the first Black American woman and the first Black out lesbian to win an individual fencing medal.
She described the experience as “surreal” and said she hopes her medal shows other people that fencing, which has historically lacked diversity, “is for you.”
“You get more diverse people getting into fencing when they see people like them,” Scruggs, 21, told NBC News in a video interview. “I hope to be an example of who can fence. Hopefully people like me who identify similar to me feel that this sport is the place for them.”
Her teammate Lee Kiefer, 30, won the final 15-6 Sunday to defend her gold medal in the event.
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