BEIJING - Erin Jackson never viewed herself as some sort of trailblazer. She just likes to skate really, really fast, whether it’s on wheels or blades.

Yet the 29-year-old from balmy Ocala, Fla., knew this moment was special, her chance to really make an impact on the generations that follow.

She’ll forever be known as the first Black woman to win a speed skating medal at the Winter Olympics — and a gold one, at that.

“Hopefully, this has an effect,” Jackson said. “Hopefully, we’ll see more minorities, especially in the USA, getting out and trying these winter sports.”

Jackson won the 500 meters last Sunday with a time of 37.04 seconds, giving the American speed skating program its first medal of the Beijing Games and first individual medal since 2010. But this was much more than a needed boost to a sport that has produced more medals than any other for the United States in the history of the Winter Games.

Jackson, a former inline skater who switched to the ice shortly before the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics in South Korea, joined fellow American Shani Davis as the only Black athletes to win long-track speed skating medals at the Olympics. Now, she wants others to follow their path into a sport that draws scant attention in the United States.

“I just hope it will do something for the sport,” she said. “I always try to be a good example.”

The silver went to Miho Takagi of Japan, while Angelina Golikova of the Russian team took the bronze.

Another Black Olympian, Elana Meyers Taylor, won a silver medal Monday in the monobob competition, another sport that is unfamiliar to many people and has fielded very few African-American competitors. Meyers Taylor finished second in 4:20.81 — 1.54 seconds behind U.S. teammate Kaillie Humphries. It was Meyers Taylor’s fourth Olympic medal, giving her the most medals in USA Bobsled history.

Her latest victory came after she took a year off following the Pyeongchang Games to become a mother. Jackson’s gold came after she slipped at the U.S. trials and shockingly finished third, putting her spot on the Olympic team in jeopardy. But teammate Brittany Bowe, another Ocala skater who finished first at the trials, gave up her spot in the 500 to ensure Jackson would get to compete in Beijing.

“She made a really big sacrifice for me,” Jackson said. “I’ll be grateful to her forever.”

As it turned out, the Americans received a third slot in the 500 when the final allocations were made, so Bowe got to skate as well. She finished 16th.

The two close friends embraced after Jackson clinched the gold.

“You’re an Olympic champion,” her coach, Ryan Shimabukuro, told her.