Lynnzee Brown, a former student gymnast and current head coach of the Penn State women’s gymnastics team, made history on the 2024 Paris Olympics when she became the primary artistic gymnast (male or female) to represent Haiti.

Brown, who has Haitian heritage through her father, who was born within the Caribbean country, says she simply desired to make her country joyful. But what began as a purely personal goal soon became something larger than she could have imagined.

“It started as an exploration of my own identity, but the deeper I dug into it, the more I learned about the country, its history and what’s going on there,” Brown tells ESSENCE, fresh off her experience on the Paris Olympics. “I also got to meet the people of Haiti and see firsthand the impact I could have.”

Her Olympic adventure was fraught with difficulties, as she had to start out from a position behind the starting line to be able to wear her country’s name and colours on her uniform.

“Trying to get dual citizenship was a bit difficult in itself. I had to make multiple trips to the embassy in Chicago and D.C. to provide my father’s birth certificate and prove that I was his biological child and that I had Haitian citizenship.”

From there, the University of Denver graduate needed to post competition results from the 2023 World Championships in Belgium to qualify for the squad for Paris 2024. Brown, the one Haitian gymnast on the Games, made her official debut in history on July 28, 2024, through the women’s all-around qualification.

She achieved her highest rating in international competition so far – 48.832 points in all events – and never let the incontrovertible fact that she was the lone gymnast carrying Haiti on her back distract her from her goal.

“Even though I was a solo gymnast, it was a cool experience,” Brown says. “I was put in with other gymnasts who were also solo, so that helped. But meeting the other Haitian athletes, there were seven of us, was just amazing. They were so encouraging. It motivated me even more to continue representing Haiti and learning more about my people. We were a really great group, the seven of us.”

For Brown, the chance to delve deeper into her heritage story through her sport was an honor and a source of pride. The 25-12 months-old says many other Haitians have reached out to her to inform her how incredible it was to see a Haitian gymnast on the Olympic stage.

“I’m proud to show that Haitian athletes are here, in a different space. I know most of us train in the States. But talking to the Haitian Olympic Committee, their goal is to eventually get facilities in Haiti and encourage more people to play sports and compete internationally.”

“I know they hope that all seven of us will go to Haiti when things stabilize. And I hope that what I’m doing now will directly help athletes and young people in Haiti. I definitely hope to go there soon, as soon as possible.”

However, the road to Paris was demanding for the Brown family financially. They founded GoFundMe to assist cover the young gymnast’s expenses as she competed on the world’s biggest stage. It was the unwavering support from those closest to her that was the primary thing that got her through the entire experience.

“Throughout my studies and training, I was always reminded to think about my why when things got tough or when I needed to be more grateful. In the case of these Olympics, my why was definitely my mom and family and how much they sacrificed. Seeing them get so emotional at the watch party, where they sent me videos, confirmed that this is all for the people who helped me get here.”