Sports Illustrated and Empower Onyx are putting the spotlight on the diverse journeys of Black women across sports—from the veteran athletes, to up-and-coming stars, coaches, executives and more—in the series, Elle-evate: 100 Influential Black Women in Sports.
The only girl and the youngest of three siblings in her family, Katrina Adams grew up on the South Side of Chicago on a close-knit block, during a time in the 1980s when gangs were on the rise.
“I think we lived between the Vice Lords and the Disciples,” says Adams, 53.