Megan Rapinoe

U.S. soccer star Megan Rapinoe, a vital part of three women’s World Cup finalist teams (two of which won championships) and two Olympic squads, built on her long activism this year by being a forceful, prominent voice against a slew of state bills aiming to bar transgender youth from taking part in high school and college sports. Rapinoe also made headlines by continuing her advocacy for equal pay for women, reminding the public that the national women’s soccer team has won far more championships than the men’s, and that the women are paid less. (Antidiscrimination lawsuits by the women’s team continue to wind their way through the courts.) All the while, Rapinoe, who made waves a few years ago by taking a knee during a soccer game to protest police violence, has been an outspoken supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement.