By Laura Pappano During the IWG World Conference on Women and Sport one speaker joked that the formal program was what happened between coffee breaks. The observation was spot on: women sport leaders from 100 countries used coffee breaks as jam sessions. They crowded onto benches, gathered at tall … [Read more...]
Mariam Al Omaira talks barriers and strides for UAE women’s sports
+ACY-nbsp+ADs By Laura Pappano If you are a girl in the United Arab Emirates the opportunity to play a sport, to compete, to be part of team faces barriers +ACY-ndash+ADs but the situation is improving, says Mariam Al Omaira of the Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Sports Academy in Abu Dhabi. Omaira, 28, spoke with me … [Read more...]
World Conference on Women and Sport: Message from Helsinki is about access and leadership
By Laura Pappano The 6th IWG World Conference on Women and Sport opened yesterday+ACY-nbsp+ADs-in Helsinki, Finland 20 years after the first gathering in 1994 in Brighton, England produced a declaration calling on governments and sports organizations to work for gender equity. The conference message … [Read more...]
It IS March Madness: Still a Shadow Championship
By Laura Pappano Get ready: For the next few weeks college basketball will be everywhere you turn. Unfortunately, few of the games that will be playing non-stop on screens will feature women+ACY-rsquo+ADs-s teams. Yes, women are playing +ACY-mdash+ADs just not where you will notice them. Every year, I get excited … [Read more...]
If co-ed youth sport is a Pandora’s Box, then Game On
+ACY-nbsp+ADs +ACY-nbsp+ADs By Laura Pappano Much of the modern life has evolved +ACY-mdash+ADs and at breakneck pace +ACY-mdash+ADs but too many adults in positions of power continue to enforce a maddeningly old-fashioned mindset when it comes to young female athletes and co-ed play. I was recently contacted by a mom whose … [Read more...]
Amnesia Bowl: FSU and Winston Catch a Pass, Send Troubling Message on Campus Sexual Violence
By Megan Wood +ACY-nbsp+ADs-Bowl season is underway and, with it, a surfeit of TV football coverage leading up to the BCS Championship game on Jan. 6 between +ACM-1 ranked Florida State and +ACM-2 Auburn. +ACY-nbsp+ADs-In it+ACY-rsquo+ADs-s giddiness over the nation+ACY-rsquo+ADs-s +ACM-1 ranking, Florida State +ACY-ndash+ADs and the Football … [Read more...]
Prize money problem in squash: Women’s purses still petite
Tennis may have long ago recognized that unequal prize money sends a troubling message (and is just wrong), but that other racquet sport +ACY-mdash+ADs squash +ACY-mdash+ADs persists in offering different purses based on sex.+ACY-nbsp+ADs-Check out this new+ACY-nbsp+ADs-post from Squash Site Carte Blanche and, just for … [Read more...]
Thai women grab volleyball title; find focus on their looks
By Mariah Philips The elation of a surprise victory is universal +ACY-ndash+ADs and infectious. The emotion is so powerful that it doesn+ACY-rsquo+ADs-t matter where in the world you are, what team it is +ACY-ndash+ADs or the sex of the players. Everyone loves a come-from-behind winner on the international sports stage, … [Read more...]
Battle of the Sexes Puzzler: Throw the match to pay a debt? If Riggs had won, he would have gotten $100K in prize money
By Laura Pappano Exactly 40 years ago, over 30,000 spectators filled the Houston Astrodome and 50 million more tuned in on TV to watch +ACY-ldquo+ADs-The Battle of the Sexes.+ACY-rdquo+ADs Billie Jean King, a 29-year-old who would be +ACM-1 in the world for five years (winning six Wimbledon Championships and four U.S. … [Read more...]
Start of football, soccer = Concussion Season
By Katie Culver For many, the start of football and soccer season evokes the excitement of uniforms, new teammates, practices, and games. But doctors and parents endure another sort of anticipation: The arrival of Concussion Season. Concussions happen in athletics year round, but with the greatest … [Read more...]