Women's Sports Blog

Tweet of the Week: Sanya Richards

Via.

Man at gym-"were you in the army?" me-"no!" man- "never seen a girl do so many pull-ups!" SMH this is the 21st century...we do everything!!!

Funny that he obviously knows women can be in the military, but can't manage to guess they can also be famous professional athletes.  Or just in shape. 

102 Wins

Is Penn State volleyball the greatest Div I women's sports team ever?  

For further discussion, an American winter league team signed a 17-year-old Japanese woman to pitch for them.  Is this a gimmick or the start of something big?

I am at a work function for the next few days so posting may be sporadic.  

Penn State's Got A Pretty Decent Vollyeball Team, Ey?

I swear I don't mean to pick up the season in the playoffs every year.  It's not malice aforethought. It just never comes to mind.  The third round is tonight and has some good matchups, or so I'm told.  Texas only lost once this year and all, too. 

Hoping Danica Doesn't Regret This

None of the reasons for Danica to eschew a Nascar deal have changed since April.  I still think it's a terrible mistake, and that she will face an audience and colleagues who are more hostile than she expects in a driving environment too unfamiliar for her to succeed.  I sincerely hope I am wrong.  But leaving aside these cultural factors, the bare facts are you need a ton of money to win in Nascar and only Hendricks seems to really have it at this point.  This article, notable for its heart in the right place but also its pre-emptively defensive tone which does not speak well for the kind of feedback Nascar is hearing about Danica, mentions that Hendricks will be 'supporting' JRM in some capacity.  Its help didn't do much for Junior last year. Tony Eury Jr. was having a terrible time being the crew chief for someone who grew up in Nascar, so it's hard to see how he could help a driver like Danica win.  Now, it's possible Eury just got too close to the situation and with a fresh start things could really improve.  With the money she's making, however, maybe Danica can't possibly succeed enough to have most die-hard fans see her as anything but a promotional gimmick.  Again, I hope not.  Lord knows, Nascar is in desperate need of something to break through its parochial image.  Its ownership knows that, but let's see if it can convince drivers, pit crews, and fans.  

'La Vida Es Un Sueno'

That's how pretentious the IAAF head sounds in this article, in which he opines that the rather large and diverse continent of Africa will not be hosting a major track event in the near future, despite having produced scads of championship runners.  Reasons?  Not given. 

Back at home, the appropriately-named Angela Bizzari of Illinois shocked presumptive favorite Jenny Barringer (who finished 163rd) to win the individual cross country title at nationals, while Villanova won the team championship. 

Heart In The Right Place

I recently got sent this piece from a website of Irish interest, although it did take me a few minutes to figure out why they were writing about Danica Patrick (right, Danica Patrick, good one).  You have to admire the guy's enthusiasm and advocacy, even if it's probably not the greatest idea to compare a woman to a horse despite how cool the horse is (see post below).  It's nice to see him expressing the common sense position 'what the hell are these guys thinking?'

The Perfect Antidote To A Bad Day

Does it really get better than this?

Derartu Tulu: What Sports Are About

Good lord, there have been a lot of Big Important Stories on the blog recently.  I promise some light-hearted banter next.  But I have to relay the amazing tale of yesterday's New York Marathon winner, 37-year-old Derartu Tulu.  The first black African to win Olympic gold in the 10,000 meters, she retired from racing when a comeback attempt faltered after the birth of her second child.  She certainly hasn't been running at the elite level at the marathon distance recently, with her only victory coming in 2001.  But not only did she accomplish another first, becoming the first Ethiopian to win the New York Marathon, she did so with an astonishing display of sportspersonship, at one point slowing to wait for the injured Paula Radcliffe, whom she supported with words of encouragement throughout the race.  Tulu's ethic is one of the purest example of how sports can bring out the best in the human spirit. 

Photos: Don Emmert/AFP/Getty.

 

Ultimate Club Championships

Today through Sunday, the national championships for club ultimate frisbee are being held in Sarasota, Florida. Ultimate is a sport that commands allegiance like no other among its participants, and the skills needed are prodigious: run constantly, throw with pinpoint control, play defense like an NFL cornerback. This tournament brings together the best in the country and they are serious.  A number of matches will be streamed live here.  Friends of the blog The Rocket Science and her better half, who I've decided to call Pain Perdu pending approval, will be in attendance and hopefully kicking some ass. 

Poll Position

It's really annoying that the NCAA still doesn't have the latest poll information up every week.  Isn't intercollegiate athletics basically its only job?  I know the site is behind because the individual coaches' associations have new polls up today.  Sigh.  Here's where the top three teams stand as we are deep in conference play for most sports.  Sorry about the format, but vertical lists are still a problem for Typepad.

Cross Country: Washington, Villanova, Colorado

Field Hockey: Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia

Golf (Golfweek/Sagarin): USC, UCLA, Arizona State

Hockey: Mercyhurst, Minnesota, New Hampshire

Soccer: the NSCAA has a broken link up to its national poll, but I'm guessing it remains Stanford, North Carolina, UCLA.  However, The Soccer Times has moved Portland up to third following the UCLA loss to Stanford on Sunday.  

Volleyball: Penn State, Texas, Hawaii