As Erin Jackson laces up for the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, she’s carrying the legacy of two people who helped shape her journey — her late mother Rita and her father Tracy.
Jackson, who made history at the 2022 Beijing Games as the first Black woman to win an individual medal at the Winter Olympics, was raised in Ocala, Florida. Before she ever stepped onto ice, she dominated the world of inline speed skating and roller derby. Her transition to ice didn’t come until adulthood, but her discipline and drive were already deeply ingrained — thanks in large part to her parents.
“They were really education-focused,” Jackson told Forbes in 2021. “At a young age, I was tricked into thinking that books and dictionaries and all that were really cool.” Her parents started a college fund for her early on and made sure she had the resources to excel. She later graduated with a degree in materials science and engineering from the University of Florida in 2015.
Her mother Rita, a pharmacy technician, passed away in 2011 while Jackson was still in high school. In a tribute post on Instagram, Jackson wrote, “I wish she could have seen me graduate from high school or college or compete in the Olympics… I miss her every day.”
Jackson has spoken candidly about the grief she still carries. During her time on FOX’s Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test, which she went on to win, she reflected on the pain of her mother missing out on life’s biggest milestones — especially seeing her win gold in Beijing. “I cried a lot in those moments, and part of it was thinking, ‘Oh, my mom would really love to see this,’” she said.
Her father, Tracy, a U.S. Army veteran and retired fire truck builder, has remained a constant source of support. After her Olympic debut in 2018, he moved to Utah so they could live near the Olympic Oval. Jackson often refers to him as her “biggest supporter” and said he’s always been in her corner — even when he didn’t know she was chasing Olympic dreams.
In fact, when she first showed up to the 2018 Olympic trials in Milwaukee, she didn’t even tell him. “I didn’t even tell my dad and my family that I was going to the Olympic trials,” she told Sports Illustrated. “To me, it wasn’t the Olympic trials. I was going to do this race that just happened to be a place where other people were trying to qualify.”
She made the Olympic team anyway.
Now a two-time Olympian, Jackson carries with her not just the hopes of a nation, but the memory of her mother and the unwavering support of her father. “I will forever be grateful to my parents for the sacrifices they made to help me excel in academics, athletics, and life,” she wrote.
