Aleia Hobbs’s Tough Time With Social Media and How the Olympian Overcome It

Entering the track and field community with her unique story of being chased by a dog on her route to church, Aleia Hobbs genesis as a sprinter started gaining traction. In the women’s 60-meter race at the ongoing World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, Hobbs made it to the semifinals. But underneath her graceful dash, lay the harsh social media criticism which eclipsed last season.

While she swiftly defends her Indoor Champs title, one can’t help but overlook the backlash and asinine comments she has faced in the past. As we hearken back to this poignant moment in her life, hold on to your seats as this might be a tearjerker.

Aleia Hobbs had to fight with the social abuse: How the athlete dodged it 

Hobbs’s career includes setting an indoor 60-meter record in February 2023, earning her the second-fastest female athlete of all time in the event. Tough, the 28-year-old athlete later stated, “I don’t want to be in the spotlight too much.“ Hobbs, however, received a lot of body-shaming comments on social media. She told Olympics.com, “everybody keeps saying, ‘that’s a trans…of course she’s going to win, she’s a man …’I am not, but its ok.” 

Hobbs told NBC sports that she loves being a black woman representing on the World’s podium. But it’s a given that things weren’t all copasetic when people say, “That’s a man. That’s not a Black woman.” She confessed: “Mentally that messes with me, but I try to put that to the side. I’m going to still do what I do and hold it down for the Black women.”

She also accepted how being faster in the tracks only attracted more criticism. When asked how she deals with it, Hobbs simply answered, “I kind of just ignore it… I try to tell myself, ‘Don’t worry about them, they are just talking.’ She has been immensely successful since setting the American record for the 60-m Indoor record in 6.94 seconds. And stands second to Russian athlete Irina Privalova’s 6.92s record set in the 1993 World Indoor Champs in Idaho. Notwithstanding professional overtures, how did she overcome her tough time?

The strength behind it: Aleia Hobbs’s response to the difficult social time 

Rather than partaking in the social media charade, the witty 2022 World gold medalist said, “They do make me feel like alright I am going to show you all then. Every time I step on track, I am gong to run as fast as I can.” And the promise was delivered year-long on the tracks when she kept up her sprinting game. In addition, Hobbs won the 100-m race at the Atlanta City Games, joining the promising American sprinters doyen for posterity.

READ MORE Aleia Hobbs: A Struggling Parenthood and Adoption Tale

Hobbs is currently forth fastest across the heats in the 2024 World Indoor Championship, having won the seventh and final section in 7.07 seconds. In the meantime, the semifinals and the championship events are next in the line-up for today!

Continue Reading  12 Months After Disturbing Injury, Aleia Hobbs Makes Perfect USATF Indoor Championship Comeback With Gold