Inaugural youth poet laureate Amanda Gorman to recite poem during Superbowl LV pre-game ceremony

Amanda Gorman, the 22-year-old poet who wowed most of the nation with her inauguration poem last week, will recite another original work at the pregame ceremony for Super Bowl LV.

The NFL announced the participation of the U.S.’s first youth poet laureate as the federation named three honorary captains for the 55th Super Bowl — people who have worked tirelessly to support their communities in various ways during this trying time.

Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman speaks during the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Joe Biden on Jan. 20. (Rob Carr/)

Trimaine Davis, a Los Angeles teacher, made sure his students had internet access so they could continue school; Suzie Dorner, a COVID ICU nurse manager at Tampa General Hospital, worked through the pandemic to save lives even as she lost her grandparents to coronavirus, and James Martin worked to support veterans, high school athletes and local youth throughout the pandemic, the NFL said.

“Gorman will recite an original poem about these three individuals in recognition of their tremendous impact during an unprecedented year,” the NFL said in a statement. “The recitation of the poem will air nationally on CBS and be featured in-stadium.”

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Kansas City Chiefs will meet in the big game on Feb. 7 in Tampa.

Gorman’s stirring poem, “The Hill We Climb,” pulled together themes of unity and reconciliation and was written, she said later, after the insurrection against the Capitol on Jan. 6. She was the youngest inaugural poet in history.

Having struggled to write the poem in the preceding weeks, she said it came out in a flood after the deadly assault on Congress, in which five people died, including a Capitol police officer. It gave her the impetus to plea for healing.

“We will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one,” Gorman wrote. “There is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it. If only we’re brave enough to be it.”