Alia Atkinson Receives Honorary Doctorate of Laws

Alia Atkinson sets world record in 50 breaststroke ISL semifinals, Budapest Hungary (photo: Mike Lewis)

Alia Atkinson; Photo Courtesy: Mike Lewis/ISL

Alia Atkinson Receives Honorary Doctorate of Laws

Five-time Olympian Alia Atkinson received an honorary doctor of laws (LLD) degree from the University of the West Indies on Thursday.

“So many accolades I never expected in this life; and it was all because I did a sport I loved while doing it to the best of my God given ability,” Atkinson wrote on Instagram. “Perseverance is (key). Thank you to the University of West Indies for this superlative honourary degree.”

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The Jamaican is one of the most decorated Caribbean swimmers in history. A member of the London Roar in the International Swimming League, she was a standout at Texas A&M. She has swum at five Olympics dating back to the 2004 Games and finished fourth in the women’s 100 breast at the 2012 Olympics.

Atkinson, 32, won a silver and a bronze medal at the 2015 World Championships in Kazan. She has four career gold medals and 10 total medals at short-course Worlds. She is the first Black woman to win a world championship in swimming.

“Her passion, swimming, may not be a well-supported or popular sport, especially in the track and field kingdom of Jamaica, but Atkinson’s achievement is improving its profile,” said Dr. Livingston White, who introduced Atkinson in the ceremony. “Her strokes continue to inspire swimmers of colour from minority regions in swimming, not only in the Caribbean, but as far as the Middle East, Africa, and the Pacific Islands. Chancellor, I invite you, on behalf of the Senate and the council of the University of the West Indies, to confer upon Alia Shanee Atkinson, five-time Olympian, two-time Olympic finalist, record-breaking breaststroke specialist, first black woman in history to win a world record title in swimming, the degree of Doctor of Laws.”

Atkinson has also earned the Order of Distinction, Commander Class, from the Jamaican government, bestowed in 2018.

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