MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – A march organized by West Virginia University's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) in support of the Black student-athlete experience took place Sunday evening.
Several hundred Mountaineer student-athletes representing all sports walked from the WVU Coliseum down Patteson Drive to the recreation fields for a 6 p.m. mini-rally with students taking a unity pledge in support of inclusion, equality and change.
Athletes who spoke this evening included football's
T.J. Simmons,
Osman Kamara and
Josh Chandler-Semedo, volleyball's
Audrey Adams and men's swimming and diving's
Ben Brooks.
"You never know what to expect on such short notice, but this really turned out better than expected,"
Tangela Cheatham, WVU's director of student-athlete enhancement, said. "Students are passionate today about the topic of social justice and I'm pleased that every sport was represented today."
Following the rally, students returned to the Coliseum.
All participants were required to wear masks and adhere to appropriate social distancing practices.
