wo iconic female athletes—Ibtihaj Muhammad and A’ja Wilson—called for more U.S. investment in women’s sports at the TIME100 Summit on Wednesday.Muhammad is an Olympic medalist in fencing, activist and author and Wilson is an Olympic gold medalist in basketball and WNBA Champion. The pair spoke with Pablo Torre, host of the sports podcast,was selected first in the WNBA draft with a salary of $338,056 over the next four years.
WIlson also spoke about not compromising on her values and helping young Black girls feel seen when getting the money. “When it comes to big sponsorships…I'm like, well, you're gonna get me and I'm not changing that because that's what needs to be seen,” she says. “Black women have been a force; when it comes to the WNBA, this is essentially an organization that was built on the backs of black women.
Wilson also talked about the awkwardness of playing in the Olympics and the WNBA season so close to each other. “I go from you being my rival—absolutely can’t stand you— to now it’s like—girl, let’s go get this gold…it’s very hard to do that,” she says. “But it also shows how elite the athletes are when you make it to that stage.
Wilson also called on fans to show appreciation for female athletes: “Buy that jersey. Go to that game, take someone else, put your money where your mouth is and invest in these women,” she said. Muhammad agrees. She’s a longtime fan, who grew up watching women’s basketball; her parents would take her to see the New York Liberty play at Madison Square Garden. “I’ve been invested from the time I was young,” she says.