I have blogged about green celebrities, green musicians, and green models, but there are also plenty of green athletes in the world.
First, since the London Olympics are still fresh on everyone’s mind, let’s take a look at a few green Olympians. No doubt you heard the name Usain Bolt a few million times during the London Olympics. Okay, maybe not quite that much, but the self-proclaimed Fastest Man of Earth’s name was certainly mentioned a lot. Bolt took home gold in the 100 m, 200 m, and 2×100 m relay. But, he also serves at the ambassador of culture/sport for the Zeitz Foundation, a non-profit organization that aims to protect the ecosystem. And although he’s incredibly fast, I doubt Bolt can outrun the rescued cheetah “Lightening Bolt” that he adopted at a Kenya Wildlife Service Headquarters ceremony.
Williams sisters Venus and Serena both took tennis gold at the London Olympics, but the sisters are also vegans. Venus became vegan after being stricken with Sjogren’s syndrome and Serena also went vegan in support of her sister.
She never competed in the Olympics, but Gabrielle Reece is certainly a world class volleyballer. She and surfer hubby Laird Hamilton promote International Coastal Cleanups. Part of the Ocean Conservancy, the International Coastal Cleanup has focused on keep the oceans, lakes, streams, and rivers of the world healthy for the past 25 years. The couple has also supported oil drilling, being especially vocal against in after the 2010 BP Gulf oil spill.
Marta Vieira da Silva, simply known as Marta in her home country of Brazil is a renowned soccer player. She was named FIFA World Player of the 2004 and 2008 Olympics. She also serves as a Goodwill Ambassador the United Nations Development Program where she works with Millennium Development Goals, which aims to cut world poverty in half by 2015.