EDITORIAL: New Mexico's diversity on world display at the Olympic games

One of the United States’ greatest strengths, though it also results in many different opinions, is our diversity. For hundreds of years now, we have served as a beacon of freedom and democracy across the world.

The world’s melting pot has been in fine form throughout this year’s 2024 Paris Olympic games. But for Americans, we can take pride from a unique source: our USA athletes look like all of us.

One need only take a glance at Team USA’s athletes to see the diversity. Our athletes are white, black, Hispanic, Asian, and beyond — truly a representation of the diversity of the United States for the world to behold.

As we celebrate the United States of America during the 2024 Paris Olympics, we as New Mexicans should celebrate the athletes New Mexico has fostered and supported.

Among those representing the USA team are notable athletes like Mariah Duran, an Albuquerque native and resident.

Duran is a street skateboarder who won her first gold medal at the X Games Minneapolis in 2018, competed in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and now in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Another is Weini Kelati, a UNM athlete and alumna, who triumphed in the NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships, defended her Mountain West Championship title, and was named the USTFCCCA National Women’s Athlete of the Year in 2019, to now compete in the Olympics in the 10,000-meter race.

Athletes from around the globe are making their mark with ties to our fine state. With Alicja Konieczek representing Poland in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and Josh Kerr for Great Britain in the 1,500-meter.

Both continue their rigorous training in Albuquerque, where Konieczek achieved her personal best in the 3,000-meter, a testament to New Mexico’s excellent training conditions.

Additionally, Anicka Newell, who represents Canada in pole vaulting, also hails from Albuquerque. Newell was born here and is a graduate of Highland High School.

New Mexico State University has supported additional athletes in golf such as Ursula Wikstrom representing Finland, who has three top ten finishes on the Ladies European Tour this season, and Alena Sharp representing Canada for her third Olympic appearance.

In New Mexico, the richness of diversity is a part of everyday life, yet it’s easy to overlook its value. Make no mistake, the way our state celebrates multiple cultures is a model that the entire country — the entire world — should embrace.

Our country stands deeply divided on many important matters. However, we must not forget that it’s good to be an American.

The United States is a multicultural melting pot, allowing cultures to flourish and blend. The Olympics is an opportunity for our fine nation to realize it is stronger when it is standing together celebrating what makes our country so great.

And we should all be proud of that.

The Olympic Games stand as a testament to unity and pride, offering a spectacle where the pursuit of excellence and the spirit of cooperation come together on a global stage.

Our team, along with the teams connected to our great nation, exemplify our diversity — a quality that the whole world ought to celebrate.