Who is Raven Saunders? Five things to know about Charleston’s Olympic shot put star
The last time Raven Saunders went to the Olympics, she told reporters she felt like she had won.
It was 2016, and Saunders was a college sophomore competing for the first time as a member of Team USA.
In Rio de Janeiro, the shot putter who grew up in downtown Charleston, came in fifth place. Her dream of becoming an Olympian had come true.
Now, after a pandemic delayed the Summer Olympic Games by a year, Saunders will get another shot at Olympic glory — this time in Tokyo.
As a Black, openly lesbian athlete, the 25-year-old will join a record-number of LGBTQ athletes heading to the games this year, according to a report by Outsports.
She is also one of at least 20 Olympic athletes with South Carolina ties who will be competing at the games.
With opening ceremonies set to begin Friday, here are five things to know about Charleston’s Olympian.
She broke records
Long before she set foot on the biggest stage in track and field, Saunders made a name for herself as a formidable track and field athlete.
In 2014, while she was still a student at Burke High School, Saunders set the national high school indoor shot put record at 56 feet, 7½ inches.
The next month, she turned around and set the national high school outdoor record at 56 feet, 8¼ inches.
In 2016, while at the University of Mississippi, the college athlete broke a 23-year-old outdoor championship record with her shot put throw of 19.33 meters, or 63 feet, 5 inches.
When she ended her college career and turned pro in 2018, she was a four-time NCAA champion.
She has her own day
When Saunders came in fifth place in the 2016 Olympic games, her hometown not only welcomed her with a parade, but Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg declared Aug. 17, 2016, “Raven Saunders Day.”
The honor came as a surprise to Saunders.
According to TV reports, Saunders thought she was attending a meet-and-greet at her high school, where she received an award.
But Saunders found herself wiping away tears when the mayor announced that it was Raven Saunders Day.
The city then held a parade in downtown Charleston in honor of Saunders. Riding on a float while her high school marching band played, Saunders waved as her community welcomed their hometown Olympian back home.
She’s a champion for mental health
After placing fifth at the Olympics in 2016, where she also threw a personal best at the time, the future looked bright for Saunders.
But not everything is at it appears.
In 2018, Saunders found herself in a dark place. She was contemplating suicide and afraid.
She sent a text to her therapist.
It may have saved her life.
“If not for sending a text to an old therapist I would not be here,” Saunders wrote in a tweet, where she also said she now sees every day as a gift.
In the last year, Saunders has opened up about her struggles with mental health as part of a greater personal mission to help others know that they are not alone.
“I’m better now. I still suffer from depression. It’s one of those things that doesn’t go away, but when I look at life and all that I’ve been through, and all that I’ve dealt with, and all that I’ve overcome — when I step into that stadium, I can do anything,” Saunders said in a mini-documentary about her journey with depression, which aired in July on PBS.
If you are in crisis, or experiencing thoughts of suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255). The service is free and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
She’s got an alter ego
There’s a reason why Saunders competed in an Incredible Hulk face mask at the U.S. Olympic Trials.
She identifies with the comic book character and, when competing, she uses her own inner strength to channel Hulk’s power when she’s preparing to throw an 8.8-pound ball more than 60 feet.
“It’s like a mixture of focus and anger and aggression and power, and I feel like that’s everything that shot put is,” Saunders told World Athletics of her alter ego in 2018. “Once I turn into the Hulk, it takes over.”
Last month, at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, Saunders let her inner Hulk roar.
Saunders unleashed a personal best throw of 19.96 meters (65 feet, 5 inches) and briefly broke a Trials record to secure her spot on Team USA. Minutes later, Jessica Ramsey topped that record with an effort of 20.12 meters, just over 66 feet.
Saunders, who finished second in the Trials, danced on the field after making her second Olympic team. She then gave a shout-out to her hometown in a reaction that would take off on social media.
“Let’s go! Let’s go! Charleston, South Carolina. We’re here! We’re here! Come on!” she shouted into the camera.
It wasn’t the first time she showed love to her Holy City.
She dedicated wins to the Emanuel AME victims
In the summer of 2015, as Saunders prepared to compete in yet another national track and field championship, Saunders decided her next win would be greater than herself.
She would dedicate her victory to the nine people who died in the June 17, 2015, mass shooting at Charleston’s Emanuel AME Church.
For Saunders, it was personal.
According to a report from MileSplit USA at the time, after her competition, Saunders wore a black T-shirt that said, “Charleston, South Carolina Holy City - 9 - We Will Never Forget.”
“I wore this shirt today to honor the nine people that were killed, or massacred, assassinated or however you want to put it,” she said, according to the outlet.
The competition happened June 25, eight days after the hate crime.
Saunders grew up just a few blocks away from the church. She was also baptized there.
This story was originally published July 21, 2021 at 11:19 AM.
