Vegan athletes to watch at the Tokyo Olympics

Alex Morgan

Team USA will have Alex Morgan returning for her third Olympics. The 32 year old has astounded many with her rapid return to full health after childbirth and remains arguably the leading player of her generation.

Alex’s achievements are too many to list, and include helping the team to three world cup wins and three Olympic Gold medals. She’s been named FIFA World Player of the Year and US Player of the Year. Others will remember her from fronting PETA campaigns on veganism and companion dogs. Her dog helped her go vegan in 2017, and she says “I adopted a vegan diet, because it didn’t feel fair to have a dog I adore, and yet eat meat all the time.”

Micky Papa

As Skateboarding makes its debut as an Olympic sport, it sees one of the great of the sports arrive in Tokyo. Micky Papa has been known as a leader in the sport for years, and the 30 year old Canadian fuels it on a vegan diet. Micky says his main reason is health but that the other reasons are all important too.

Amelia Brodka

Mickey is not the old vegan ‘boarder, as Poland’s Amelia Brodka is representing her country. Skateboarders are known for being ahead of the curve and Amelia says her eating choices have helped her career. She’s been vegan for ten years and also works hard to help women in the sport.

Morgan Mitchell

Track events are of course the mainstay of the Olympics and Aussie Morgan Mitchell will be running in her second games. The 800 metre is a multiple national champion and has taken titles over the 400 metres distance and the 4 x 400 m relay.

She’s been vegan since 2012. “My now ex boyfriend had watched a few documentaries and showed me them and said we should go vegan. I dropped everything instantly and did it. It was this weird light bulb moment… I haven’t looked back since.”

Izzi Batt-Doyle

Another Australian will be running in the 5000 metres. Izzi Batt-Doyle has her first time at the games after being a force in the sport for a few years. She turned vegan in late 2014 after being put off for a few years, and sticks to her choices no matter whether the choices are poor.

Vivian Kong

Vivian has fenced her way to success, claiming medals for Hong Kong for the first time in the Asian games and taking two World Cups. She’s back to the Olympics this year aiming high. “I saw all the benefits of being vegan, the ethical, the environmental, the social. All these things I could do to help contribute to a better, bigger cause.”

She sprang the decision on her coach who watched her energy levels and decided he was going vegan too! The 27 year old says she recovers better and is stronger.

Diana Taurasi

Few have impacted their sport as much as Diana Taurasi, who is now back for her fifth Olympics! The 39 year old is looking to add her fifth Gold to her amazing range of titles. She’s possibly the greatest of all time in women’s basketball, and recently became the first ever to pass 9000 points in the national league.

She turned vegan in 2012 as she became one of the older players in the sport. “Just staying away from foods that cause a lot of inflammation, fats and sugars that everyone knows are obviously a little counterproductive if you eat large amounts of them.”

Cheavon Clarke

Cheavon is likely to be a name we’ll hear more of. The Jamaican born heavyweight boxer now represents Great Britain. He loves to create food that is both healthy and nutritious, and has made a cookery clip with the BBC.

“There’s a myth that being a big athlete you can’t be vegan. I don’t agree because I’m lifting the same numbers. With the power of the plants!”

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