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RIO DE JANEIRO -- When she was 11, Simone Manuel came home and asked her mother a question: Why werent there more people who looked like her in swimming?Mom didnt have an answer.We got on the internet and did some searches and we came up with some information, Sharron Manuel said. At that moment she really realized she was OK with who she was. It was important for me to do that for her because even at that time I saw she could do something special.Her parents were in the stands behind the medal podium at the Olympic Aquatics Center on Thursday night to see their daughter swim her signature event at the Rio Games. When it was over, Marc and Sharron Manuel couldnt immediately see the videoboard with the results.The 20-year-old from Sugar Land, Texas, had just become the first African American woman to win an individual gold medal in swimming. Her time of 52.70 seconds in the 100-meter freestyle was an American and Olympic record.Then my husband saw Olympic record and saw she had gotten first, Sharron told The Associated Press by phone Friday. We know how hard she had worked and she had sacrificed a lot to get to this point.While the world and social media lauded her milestone, Manuel didnt have time to celebrate. She was right back in the pool on Friday, qualifying 11th in the 50-meter freestyle preliminaries. She was staying off her phone that froze up because of an overload of text messages and calls.I just wanted to re-focus and move forward from the 100, she said. I havent really gotten a chance to take everything in, but thats OK because I want to do well in the rest of my events this week.Manuel recognizes the significance of her achievement, yet she has never wanted to be defined solely by the color of her skin. After her win, she mentioned police brutality in the U.S. and said she hoped her victory helps mend the nations racial divide in some way.She wants to be seen as an individual who just like everyone else has worked hard to be where she is, Sharron Manuel said. She would like to be recognized for her merits and dedication. Its not just about her skin color. She understands that its a part of it.At the same time, Manuel knows that by winning Olympic gold in a sport that still has few people of color, especially in the United States, she carries what she described as the weight of the black community.She put her head in her hands and wept in the pool after she tied 16-year-old Canadian Penny Oleksiak and realized the depth of her achievement.I would like there to be a day where there are more of us and its not `Simone, the black swimmer, she said, because the title `black swimmer makes it seem like Im not supposed to be able to win a gold medal or Im not supposed to be able to break records and thats not true because I work just as hard as anybody else.As a child, Manuel always loved the water. When she was 18 months old and her mothers back was briefly turned, she scurried into the bathtub fully clothed to play with her brother.We would have to watch her if it was bath time because she would always try to sneak off to get in the bathtub with him because she loved the water, her mother said. We didnt know then that this is what we were in for.She started swimming at a pool near her childhood home in Brooklyn, New York, where the other kids were mostly Chinese from her school located in Chinatown. Manuel learned Mandarin as a result.She stuck with swimming while her brother played basketball. In 2010, she experienced a turning point, being chosen for USA Swimmings diversity select camp, where she met other talented minorities. That inspired and motivated her to keep going. Now at Stanford, she is majoring in science, technology and society.Before Manuel, there were only a handful of minorities on the U.S. national team. Cullen Jones was the best known, having won two golds and two silvers at the last two Olympics. He is a major proponent of USA Swimmings Make a Splash campaign that seeks to prevent drownings by teaching youngsters to swim with an emphasis on minorities.African Americans make up just 1.3 percent of USA Swimmings 337,084 members, according to the governing bodys 2015 membership data. But those numbers have been creeping up slightly in the past few years.Swimming has struggled to attract minorities in part because typically those who cant swim had parents who also could not swim and were fearful of drowning. According to USA Swimming statistics, 70 percent of African Americans and 60 percent of Hispanic and Latino children cannot swim compared to 40 percent of whites. Black children drown at a rate nearly three times higher than their white peers.A generation ago, African-Americans were largely denied access to pools and so it never became part of their recreational culture to swim. In the 1960s, many whites left cities for private pools and clubs in the suburbs, where segregation continued to exist.JaVe Bonner, a pre-med student at George Mason University, said Manuels win is significant to her because she was told when she was younger that she couldnt go into a neighborhood pool since her skin was dirty.To me, this win shows that black people are resilient and soar through adversity, she wrote in an email.Jones, who didnt make this years Olympic team, tweeted out his pride in Manuel, calling her achievement amazing. Congrats also poured in from Tony Award-winning actor and writer Lin-Manuel Miranda of the Broadway smash Hamilton and NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson.Manuel was quick to single out Jones, Olympic and Stanford teammate Lia Neal and former Olympic swimmer Maritza Correia for blazing a path for her.The gold medal wasnt just for me, it was for people who have come before me and inspired me to stay in the sport, and for people who believe they cant do it, she said. I hope Im an inspiration for others to get out there and try swimming. They might be pretty good at it.---Associated Press Writer Alina Hartounian in Phoenix contributed to this report.Calvin Johnson Womens Jersey . 8 Iowa State on Saturday, sending the Cyclones to their third consecutive loss. The Longhorns (14-4, 3-2) got their biggest win of the season with their third in the row in the Big 12. Kenny Golladay Jersey . 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The Gunners are currently the second highest scorers in the league but Wenger insists Walcott will add something extra to his team.RENTON, Wash. -- Seahawks quarterback?Russell Wilson announced earlier this week that he is joining a group led by investor Chris Hansen that is working on building an NBA/NHL arena in Seattles SODO neighborhood.On Thursday, Wilson said he plans to have an ownership stake in the basketball team, should the NBA return to Seattle.Yeah, I will. Yes, for sure, Wilson said. Its going to be an exciting thing.I met Chris a few years ago, and we were having a great conversation. ... Ive told you guys Ive been really authentic about wanting to own a team one day and being a part of something really special and doing that. And even though Im young, I definitely have a business mindset. And I want to be able to help people and give back and help change this community, continue to change this community for the better.Wilson was asked if hes willing to lobby city hall and Seattles mayor on behalf of the ownership group.Of course, Wilson said. I think its just trying to encourage people and let them understand, you know, how important it is, and it will open up tons of jobs for people. ... Its going to be a state-of-the-art facility and give people opportunity.The Seaattle SuperSonics were an NBA team for 40 seasons, from 1967-68 through 2007-08, before the franchise relocated to Oklahoma City and became the Thunder.dddddddddddd Hansen has been at the forefront of attempts to bring the NBA back to Seattle.Hansen and his investment group announced last month that they would pay for the arena with private funds.For a long time, I have wanted to own a team and be part of that, Wilson said. Really for the past year, Id say, [Ive] really kind of been really processing it and thinking about it and trying to understand, and trying to get information from the people of Seattle.Its such a great city. Its a financially prospering city, a place where we can change peoples lives and give new jobs and help people around the city. Its a great area, the SODO area. Its really, really special. Obviously you have the football stadium, CenturyLink, right there. You have the Mariners in Safeco [Field] right there too.And we want to bring a state-of-the-art facility there, too, an arena. So its exciting to me. ' ' '