There was this stereotype that felt really pervasive when I was growing up, which was that we were like heavy-boned.

I literally had the worst memories, so year 10, we all had to race each other.

And I came first, I'll beat all the boys, which wasn't surprising to me because I swam twice a day every day

And when the boys was like so flabbergasted he was like but he was like how

I was like what do you mean he was like your bones are heavier? How? But it was genuine, confusion, fascination.

I remember telling my friends after I failed to swing tests when I was going

aboard with this school trip thing.

Oh, it's so embarrassing.

I couldn't like swim in the river without a life jacket on.

But yeah, I remember telling my friends there, it was like, oh, it's because I got heavier bones.

And like obviously when I was saying that age, 1617 I wasn't aware of like the implications of it and

although I've never researched this I'm very much presuming and it's not true. Hi, I'm Sen and Jones from the BBC.

I adopted this identity nearly three years ago now.

Before this, I was an elite swimmer, also known by many as the black girl on the swim team.

After 13 years of competitive swimming in the UK and the US University System and training for hours and hours day in day out.

I only met six black girls of my standard and by the time I'd reach 21 I became the last black girl standing.

More myths. more men.

black people don't swim.

Black people can't float that our bones are too dense

and so we're not naturally good swimmers because we sink.

Black women don't want to get their hair wet.

I was one of maybe four or five black girls on my team

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