Metro East Sun

A controversial Centerville, Ill., native Olympic athlete failed to medal at the Tokyo Olympic Games.

Gwen Berry, who competed in the women’s hammer throw finals this week, ended up in second to last place (11th) achieving a distance of  71.35 meters, the New York Post reported.

Berry has been garnering headlines when she won the bronze at the U.S. track and field hammer throw trials in June, choosing to hold up a shirt that said “Activist Athlete” and facing the stands rather than the U.S. flag.

“If you know your history, you know the full song of the national anthem,” Berry said on Black News Channel. “The third paragraph speaks to slaves in America — our blood being slain … all over the floor.”

The 32-year-old Berry said that while competing in the Olympics, she would also emphasize putting a spotlight on Black communities in need.

"And I will do whatever comes upon me and whatever is in my heart," she added, according to CNN. "I've already been through all of that and yet I am still here, still saying that my Black communities need help."

Berry had hoped that her actions would stir conversation on how to fix some of the problems that she was taking a stand for.

"America is the greatest country in the world,” she said. “We are capable of fixing these issues. I am tired of talking about them. I won't do it anymore."

Of the criticism she receive, "They can feel how they feel, but I’m extremely American because I’ll fight for people here, because we’ve endured it here" she added.

Berry attended college at Southern Illinois University where she participated in throwing events to eventually come in fourth place at the 2008 USA Junior Championships, ESPN reported.

After college, Berry continued to be a premier athlete in hammer and weight throwing (the indoor version of the hammer throw). In 2018, Marie Clair writes, she had a throw that registered  77.78-meters, which ranks sixth all time.