Photo Credit: FRANCK FIFE/AFP/GettyImages

Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison will come to Princeton on April 27 to be honored by Womanspace for her efforts to shed light on child sexual abuse through her “Fearless” Foundation. The two-time medalist in Judo will be given the 23rd annual Barbara Boggs Sigmund Award at an event be held at the Westin.

Ms. Harrison made history at the 2016 Olympics in Rio by winning her second gold medal by any American (man or woman) in the history of the sport of judo. Her first gold medal was won at the 2012 London Olympics. 

At the age of 16, Ms. Harrison revealed the fact that she had been sexually abused for years by her coach. After the story came to light, she moved from Ohio to Massachusetts to train with Jimmy Pedro, a two-time Olympic Bronze medalist and his father Jim Pedro, Sr. The Pedros became her coaches but also her surrogate family.

Ms. Harrison has used her Olympic platform to speak out about child sexual abuse and advocate for others to do the same. She also summoned the courage to face her abuser, delivering a victim impact statement at his sentencing hearing in Federal Court in Ohio. Her story has captivated audiences everywhere and has been featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, The New York Times, USA Today, Time Magazine, The Today Show, CNN, MSNBC, among many others.

Ms. Harrison was awarded the 2012 OC Tanner Inspiration Award, The Women’s Sports Foundation’s Wilma Rudolph Courage Award; was named one of Glamour Magazine’s Women of the Year for 2012, Boston Globe Magazine’s Bostonian of the Year, and the Boston Sportswriter’s Association Athlete of the Year. She created the Fearless Foundation to shine a light on the darkness that is child sexual abuse and to enrich the lives of survivors through education and sport, leading survivors to mastery and enabling them to flourish in all aspects of life. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Doc Wayne, an organization that provides sports-based therapy for at-risk youth, and uses her voice on behalf of countless organizations dedicated to protecting children and women.

For information about the event, visit www.womanspace.org.