Roe v. Wade: Olympic medalist Ashley Spencer says 'women are under attack in this country'

David Woods, Indianapolis Star
·2 min read
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Mar 30, 2018; Austin, TX, USA; Ashley Spencer wins the invitational women's 400m hurdles in 56.43 during the 91st Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays at Mike A. Myers Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 30, 2018; Austin, TX, USA; Ashley Spencer wins the invitational women's 400m hurdles in 56.43 during the 91st Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays at Mike A. Myers Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
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Ashley Spencer and Allyson Felix, both Olympic medalists in track and field, blasted the Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade. The law had had made abortions legal for 50 years.

Spencer, 29, of Indianapolis, won a bronze medal in the 400-meter hurdles at Rio de Janeiro in 2016. After qualifying Friday for the final in the USA Championships at Eugene, Ore., she said:

“Women are under attack in this country. So my time does not matter. My performance on the track does not matter. What matters is the rights of women being under attack.

“The choice that we have on our bodies has just been taken away from us. And as a female athlete, we are already not getting equal pay, equal opportunity, equal support.  And so now, I don’t even have control over my own body as a woman.

“I’m a woman first. And that’s not fair. That’s not right. This country, this globe, was built from a woman’s womb. And now a woman’s womb is under a governing body. I don’t have control over myself. And it’s heartbreaking that I can stand here, represent this country, and not get the support that I need from this country that I love so very much.

“My body is not something to be governed. It’s something to be supported and celebrated. And that’s what’s most important right now.”

USA track: Indy's Lynna Irby, Ashley Spencer stay on track to make world team

Spencer, after running her fastest time since 2019 in a semifinal, tripped and fell over the first hurdle Saturday. Coincidentally, she was inducted Saturday into the Indiana Track and Field Hall of Fame. She lives in Austin, Texas.

Felix, 36, is a five-time Olympian. Her 11 medals are the most ever in women’s track and field. Felix, who announced this would be her final season, has become outspoken in recent years about women’s issues.

“Any time women’s rights get taken away, it’s a sad day,” Felix said. “I will always fight for women. I will always fight for them to have the ability to make their own decisions.”

She finished sixth in the 400 meters and will be part of relays in the upcoming World Championships at Eugene.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Olympian Ashley Spencer on abortion ruling: 'Women are under attack'