Athletic Women Blog

Super Bowl Sunday nears, and America prepares for another day of priapic celebration. This got me to thinking about something. A means often used to denigrate female athletes is to claim that they are all gay. Not true of course, and there would be nothing amiss even if it were. But what is more, isn't there an irony to be found here? Well, you decide:

The United States Olympic Committee has named Natalie Coughlin and Nastia Liukin co-winners of the USOC SportsWoman of the Year for 2008. Paralympic swimmer Erin Popovich earned praise as well—USOC Paralympian of the Year. Congratulations, Natalie, Nastia, and Erin!

Here, though, I will single out Natalie Coughlin. I'm delighted the USOC had the good sense to honor Natalie for her accomplishments in Beijing—she was, after all, the first American woman in any Olympic sport to win six medals in one Olympics—which have been, I believe, overlooked; cloaked, that is, by the fawning attention given to those of Michael Phelps.

H2O Audio, too, deserves a good word for choosing Natalie to promote its products. This I have tended to with the H2O Audio commercial spot included below. After you watch, be sure to check out Natalie's playlist. I was amused but found it wasn't my cup of tea. But then, that's just me; perhaps you will be better able to appreciate it:

The Hollywood Reporter gives Underworld: Rise of the Lycans a passing mark, and so far the movie earns a 6.9 out of 10 rating from voters on IMDb. What is more, Lycans came in second at the box office with receipts of $20.7 million. Not bad for a third installment, a prequel at that, in a franchise that could easily have become shopworn. Yours truly, alas, must hold off until later this week to see it.

Trifles aside, the news from this weekend contains a particularly sad note: the death of esteemed women's basketball coach Kay Yow.

First, a reminder that Underworld: Rise of the Lycans opens today.

Results from the Sarah Connor Chronicles poll have been erratic. This doesn't come as a complete surprise, but it is noteworthy.

Finally, a little Friday fun:

Only a short post today, but it is a treat—another artistic display of stamina and strength by a female aerialist, this time Brazilian Carol Correa:

Now seems a particularly appropriate time to honor African-American female athletes, not only for their obvious accomplishments on the courts and fields of athletic competition, but also for their poise and fortitude. Thus the title of today's post comes from Jackie Joyner-Kersee, an African-American woman who grew up in poverty and went on to become the greatest female athlete of the 20th century.

To do this tribute properly would require not a single post and a single day but an entire website and a lifetime. Because of this, I can provide here only an excerpt from the roster of African-American women who have contributed—and continue to contribute—so much to the world of sports:

The Dolly Vardens - professional baseball's first black women’s team (1867).

Ora Washington - known as the "Queen of Tennis," she is a tennis and basketball legend.

Alice Coachman - the first black woman to win an Olympic gold medal.

Toni Stone - the first woman to play in the Negro Leagues.

Althea Gibson - winner of 11 Grand Slam titles and the first black player to win at Wimbledon, also the first African American to earn her LPGA player's card.

Wilma Rudolph - the first American woman to win three gold medals in track and field during a single Olympics.

Wendy Hilliard - the first African American to compete on a U.S. National Rhythmic Gymnastics Team, she is a member of the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame.

Carla Dunlap - an important early pioneer of women's bodybuilding and a member of the IFBB Hall of Fame.

Georgeann Wells - the first woman to dunk in a collegiate basketball game.

Evelyn Ashford - the first woman to run the 100 meters in under 11 seconds at the Olympics.

Jackie Joyner-Kersee - the greatest female athlete of the 20th century.

Florence Griffith-Joyner - the fastest woman ever.

Debi Thomas - the first black figure skater to win a World Championships singles title.

Gail Devers - track and field star and three-time Olympic gold medalist.

Cherie Greer - holder of several NCAA and international lacrosse titles.

Lenda Murray - an eight-time Ms. Olympia, she has won that title more times than any other woman.

Sheryl Swoopes - the first player signed by the WNBA and a three-time MVP.

Lisa Leslie - a three-time WNBA MVP and holder of four Olympic gold medals.

Dominique Dawes - the first African American to win an individual Olympic medal in gymnastics.

Venus and Serena Williams - what can you say that hasn't already been said?

Laila Ali - undefeated boxing champion.

Natasha Watley - the first African American to play Olympic softball for the USA.

If I've missed someone I shouldn't have, omitted an important fact, or garbled something, and surely I've done at least one of each, please right things with your welcome comments.

Be sure to stick around for the ending:

No longer confined by outmoded stereotypes, female tennis players are free to bring power to their game. One consequence of this development has been the near total domination of the sport by big, powerful women (Williams sisters, anyone?). Another, the WTA Tour now showcases a variety of athleticism heretofore uncommon in the world of women's sports—progress that is good for sports fans and female athletes alike.

Where I live we occasionally get winter thunderstorms, soft falling snow with thunder and lightning as a backdrop. I imagine first seeing Tina Lockwood produces feelings similar to those felt during a winter thunderstorm, for both experiences are at once beautiful and awe-inspiring.

A teenaged Tina Lockwood stunned the bodybuilding world of the early 1990s with her massive frame and tremendous power. But after a few years, tired I guess of all the attention (or perhaps the nature of it), she retired from the sport and, as far as one can tell, vanished altogether. Still, during her short career Tina disabused all who saw her of the notion that women are forever the "weaker" sex.



Photo courtesy of Women's Physique World.

Candace keeps making news, even in the off-season. And the latest is a doozy—she is expecting her first baby. This is of course happy news, but it does come with considerable repercussions for the Los Angeles Sparks and the WNBA more generally.

Our beloved Rhona Mitra returns:





Underworld: Rise of the Lycans in theaters January 23:



Can't wait!

Telegraph.co.uk introduces us to Zoe Smith, a 14-year-old weightlifter who holds 98 British records, every record but one in her weight class (53 kg) from senior level on down. So prodigious is this young powerhouse, she was recently voted one of the British Olympic Association's Athletes of the Year for 2008, an honor usually reserved for Olympic medalists.

Zoe, understandably, looks forward to competing in front of her home crowd at the London Olympics in 2012. I expect she will not disappoint them.

The Associated Press has named Candace Parker its top female athlete for 2008. The brief description of her busy year that I gave last week doesn't do it justice:

She led Tennessee to a second straight national championship in women's basketball, was the first pick in the WNBA draft, took the league's MVP and rookie of the year awards, and helped the U.S. win a fourth-straight Olympic gold medal.

Parker beat out Lorena Ochoa, Nastia Liukin, Dara Torres, and Shawn Johnson—all of whom had a great year. Still, I was surprised to find Natalie Coughlin missing from that list; to my mind, Coughlin hasn't received enough recognition for her six medal wins at the Olympics.