Olympic great Allyson Felix has called for better maternity care for black women to ensure the death of team-mate Tori Bowie is “not in vain”.
Of the four Americans who teamed up to win 4x100m relay gold at the Rio 2016 Olympics, three have nearly died or died while giving birth.
Felix gave birth at 32 weeks in 2018, having developed pre-eclampsia, and was “unsure if she was going to make it”.
Her and Bowie’s team-mate Tianna Madison (formerly Bartoletta) said she nearly died during childbirth after going into labour at 26 weeks.
Writing for Time magazine, seven-time Olympic champion Felix said: “Three gold medallists from that 4x100m relay team in Rio set out to become mothers. All three of us – all Black women – had serious complications.
“Tori passed away. We’re dealing with a black maternal health crisis. Here you have three Olympic champions and we’re still at risk.”
Felix, the most decorated US track and field athlete of all time, pointed to CDC data from 2021 which states the maternity mortality rate for black women in the United States is 2.6 times higher than the rate for white women.
In the UK, data published by the University of Oxford in 2021 showed black women were four times more likely than white women to die in pregnancy and childbirth.
Felix said: “That needs to change, now, especially in light of Tori’s tragic passing.
“Awareness is huge. Serena Williams had near-death complications during her pregnancy. Beyonce developed pre-eclampsia [a condition that causes high blood pressure during pregnancy and after labour].
“I hate that it takes Tori’s situation to put this back on the map and to get people to pay attention to it. But oftentimes, we need that wake-up call.”
Felix, 37, added she has a “very real concern” about having more children and called for the medical community to “do its part” and “hear the pain of black women”.
“I’m hopeful that things can get better,” she added.
“I’m hopeful that Tori, who stood on the podium at Rio, gold around her neck and sweetness in her soul, won’t die in vain.”
