Laila Edwards made history last Thursday when she became the first Black woman to play for the U.S. Olympic women’s hockey team.
A native of Cleveland Heights, Ohio — the hometown of Jason and Travis Kelce — Edwards began playing hockey there with her brother Bobby and sister Shayla. Their younger brother, Colson, would later take up the sport as well.
“To have the opportunity to be an Olympian is crazy just to even say out loud,” Edwards said as the Olympic tournament began.
“There are a lot of people who helped me get here that I owe thanks to, and I want to give my best every day to make them proud.”
In a “SportsEye” profile published in April 2024, I detailed the family’s decision to enroll Edwards at Bishop Kearney Prep School in Rochester, New York. While there, she met and played alongside current U.S. teammate Caroline Harvey.
Both later starred at the University of Wisconsin, where they helped the Badgers win the 2023 NCAA championship. During her sophomore season, Edwards scored 21 goals and totaled 56 points in just 41 games, earning her a spot on the U.S. senior national team. Last spring, she won a second national championship with Wisconsin.
At her first world championship tournament in 2024, Edwards became the youngest American to win the tournament’s MVP award, earning the honor even though Canada defeated the U.S. in the championship game.
Those international experiences included moments that went well beyond the ice.
“There was a mom with her two kids of color in Europe, and they came to every single game,” Edwards told the Associated Press. “She told me how cool it was for her kids to see people who look like them playing hockey. I was extremely emotional and honored by that.”
Black hockey players in the United States remain rare, and Edwards said she has dealt with challenges along the way.
“Walking into a rink and being told the basketball courts were that way was very annoying and tough,” she said. “Having experienced those microaggressions at a younger age definitely taught me lessons and made me stronger.”
At 6-foot-1, Edwards plays forward at the collegiate level, but she willingly shifted to defense for the Olympics to help an American team dealing with injuries.
The position change did not limit her impact.
In last week’s 5-1 preliminary-round win over Czechia, Edwards showcased her offensive instincts while skating on the power-play unit. She first set up forward Alex Carpenter for a scoring chance. After the Czech goaltender made the save, the rebound came back to Edwards, who delivered a precise pass to Megan Keller. Keller fired a shot that Carpenter redirected into the net.
Edwards earned an assist on the goal and logged 20 minutes, 46 seconds of ice time in her Olympic debut.
The Reid Roundup
Laila Edwards is the second Black player on a U.S. Olympic hockey team. Current Buffalo Sabres forward Jordan Greenway played in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics…Other Olympians of color include: Erin Jackson, long-track speed skating. She became the first Black woman to win gold in an individual Winter Olympic event at the Beijing Games…Elana Meyers Taylor, bobsled and monobob. The four-time Olympic medalist seeks her first gold medal…Darryl Payne, Jr., skeleton. Competitors race head-first on a small sled. Payne is the first Black American to compete with the U.S. men’s team…Kaysha Love, bobsled and monobob. A former collegiate sprinter, Love is an accomplished bobsled pilot…Mystique Ro, skeleton. It is her first Olympics…Azaria Hill, bobsled. A former sprinter, Hill’s mother Denean Howard-Hill, is a three-time track Olympian and winner of a gold and two silver medals. Her father, Virgil Hill, is an Olympic silver medalist in boxing…Jasmine Jones, bobsled. She is also a former outstanding collegiate sprinter…Bryan Sosoo, bobsled. Born in Ghana, this is the first Olympics for the former track star…Kelly Curtis, skeleton. Four years ago, she became the first Black athlete to compete with the USA Olympic women’s skeleton team.