Simone Biles, Denzel Washington Among New Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients

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July 1, 2022

By Stephanie Holland, The Root

Gymnast Simone Biles and actor Denzel Washington are among the most recent recipients of the President Medal of Freedom (Alberto E. Rodriguez, Mike Coppola/Getty Images)

If you thought Simone Biles was done making history and collecting medals…not so fast.

The decorated gymnast is among the 17 extraordinary people being recognized with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She is joined by legendary actor Denzel Washington, civil rights activist Diane Nash, civil rights attorney Fred Gray and critical care nurse Sandra Lindsay, who was the first person to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian honor in the country.

“These seventeen Americans demonstrate the power of possibilities and embody the soul of the nation–hard work, perseverance, and faith,” the White House said in a statement. “They have overcome significant obstacles to achieve impressive accomplishments in the arts and sciences, dedicated their lives to advocating for the most vulnerable among us, and acted with bravery to drive change in their communities–and across the world–while blazing trails for generations to come.”

Learn more about the work done by Biles and Washington to earn them this honor.

Biles’ athleticism encouraged some people to pay more attention to Black Olympians.

ABHM’s breaking news page includes articles about Black Americans’ accomplishments.