Misty Copeland, a soloist with American Ballet Theatre, made history in the ballet world Tuesday. ABT announced that she will become the first African-American female principal ballerina for the company, which is headed into its 75th year of performances.

The Kansas City-born 32-year-old ballerina has been dancing with the company for more than 14 years and has been a soloist for nearly eight years. Most recently, she played the role of Odette/Odile in Swan Lake at the Met. This is one of the toughest and rewarding ballet roles. According to critic Alastair Macaulay, it is the “most epic role in world ballet.”

She was among seven dancers who were promoted at Tuesday’s meeting, Reuters reports. She follows in the footsteps of Desmond Richardson, an African-American male dancer who was promoted to a principal spot with ABT in 1997.

Beyond her work as a ballerina, Copeland is known for her openness regarding race and ballet. She said the Time 100 Gala, where she was named one of the world’s most influential people, that her mother told her that the world would view her as “black” no matter what she decided to do with her life, Huffington Post reports.

“I had no idea that that was going to be my truth at some point in my life, when I moved to New York City at 17 years old and joined American Ballet Theatre and realized I was the only African American woman in a company of 80 dancers,” she said.

Copeland is the author of the best-selling memoir Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina and is the subject of the documentary shown at the Tribeca Film Festival this year, A Ballerina’s Tale. In her memoir, she describes her early life and her struggle in making it as a ballerina in a world dominated by white dancers.

She also wrote in her memoir that she has always hoped to rise to the high-status principal level. She explained that she fears it will be decades before another African-American female holds an elite ballet company position similar to hers, and “That if I don’t rise to principal, people will feel I have failed them.” It looks like she will not have to worry about that any longer.

Copeland has served as an inspiration for aspiring dancers. At past shows, she has experienced such wild applause that the show has stopped, according to the New York Times. 

She is among several other ballet icons who are changing the face of ballet today.