Category: Sports

For women athletes, world recognition is a long time coming

Last year was arguably the best year for women’s sports yet.

According to data analysis company S&P Global, in-person attendance and viewership were higher, with women’s professional sports sponsorships increasing by 22% since 2023. According to UN Women Australia, globally, there has been a lack of interest in women’s sports. But it seems that they might finally be getting the attention they deserve.

To find out what is driving this change in attitude towards women’s sports, I interviewed 10 women athletes across high school, university, and coaching.

Historically, women’s sports have not gotten the recognition that they deserve. However, during 2024, women’s collegiate basketball had a significant increase in viewership compared to the previous year. The Final Four game in 2024 was a showdown between two players from two U.S. universities: Caitlin Clark of the University of Iowa and Paige Bueckers of the University of Connecticut. The game drew in a peak audience of 16.1 million, according to an article in Sports Illustrated.

Women’s media coverage has tripled since 2019. At this rate, if coverage trends continue, women’s share of coverage could reach 20% by the end of this year, according to Women.org, an organization within the United Nations devoted to gender equality and the empowerment of women.

Gender parity in sports

The Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games were officially the first to see 50:50 coverage in gender equality.

Avery Elliot, a track and field athlete from the University of Pennsylvania, attended the Paris Olympics as a spectator and said she noticed the change – more social media presence and sponsorships, particularly highlighting women of color, especially in women’s gymnastics, spurred by the popularity and success of U.S. athletes Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles and Brazilian Rebeca Andrade.

The lack of media coverage of women has always played a role in the lack of recognition that they receive. Lanae Carrington, a track star at Lehigh University in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, said that in the past, women athletes would get dismissed for getting a low number of views or for the belief that women’s games were not as entertaining as those of men. “Overall, women are making a stronger impact in the entertainment industry, whether that’s more highlight reels on TikTok or screen time on TV,” Carrington said. “It’s finally becoming normalized.”

One of the hardest things to deal with as an athlete is a lack of support, whether from the media, in person or on the sidelines.

Brianna Gautier, a volleyball and basketball sensation at Neumann University in Pennsylvania, said it is hard to play a game where you’re not going to have a full house. “But it’s kind of helped me learn to just play for myself instead of waiting for people to show up and relying on that to bring some type of energy because I feel like it starts within you and your teammates,” she said.

Play for yourself first

As a track and field athlete, I have seen this firsthand. It is unfortunate to see people walk away after the men are finished competing. But I found that when you start showing up for yourself with energy, success comes rolling in. Gautier has embraced the idea of playing for herself and nobody else.

It used to be that at Neumann, people would attend the men’s basketball games but never stay afterward to support the women. She also expressed the importance of the support of NBA players such as Steph Curry, who came out to watch several women’s Stanford basketball games in 2023. Gautier said that people think to themselves that if their favorite male basketball players are tuning in to watch women’s sports, it must be worthwhile.

Carrington said parents also need to support their daughters in athletics. “This is important because many girls don’t have parents who encourage them to play more traditionally masculine sports, such as basketball and soccer,” she said.

Most of the women I interviewed commented on the change in the WNBA as the catalyst for the change in women’s sports..

Liz Spagnolo is a soccer player at Tower Hill High School in the U.S. state of Delaware who appreciates the opportunities she now has. “Women in sports is big for us because based on women 100 years ago, we wouldn’t be expected to play sports, or be expected to do something like cheer,” Spagnolo said.

The Caitlin Clark effect

Arianna Montgomery, an athlete at The Tatnall School, the private school in Delaware that I also attend, said she appreciates the change in women’s basketball.

“It’s gotten a lot more fame, definitely more college sports have gotten a lot more fame,” Montgomery said. “I think women’s games are starting to become more popular. People are starting to look more towards women’s sports as well as men’s sports, and even since before, instead of men’s sports now, a decade ago, that wasn’t the case.”

Many of the women I spoke to said that a big contributor to the success of women’s sports is due to the Catlin Clark effect. The Caitlin Clark effect is a term that was created after her record-breaking seasons playing women’s basketball at the University of Iowa during the years of 2023-2024.

As a result, she has become the all-time leading scorer in college basketball before entering the WNBA, and has reportedly signed sponsorship deals worth more than $11 million.

Ruth Hiller, a lacrosse coach at my school said that are a number of successful women athletes that young women can now look up to, including tennis superstars Venus and Serena Williams and Alex Morgan, the former captain of the U.S. women’s soccer team, women’s tennis pioneer Billie Jean King and Charlotte North, a professional lacrosse player who broke the all-time goals record in college lacrosse.

Women now rack up medals and points

Daija Lampkin, my track and field coach, pointed to Alison Felix, who won more medals than any other U.S. track and field athlete, and tennis superstar Serena Williams.

It is important, Lampkin said, that women support women. “Our body is critical, and some women are self-conscious that they are going to be muscular,” Lampkin said. “It can tear down your confidence. It’s not talked about in sports how women look at their bodies. People tear down Serena Williams and her body all the time, but look at where she is and how much she has accomplished”.

I have been participating in sports since I was 3 years old, when my parents signed me up for gymnastics. I run track and field and am a runner, jumper and hurdler. I began training for track and field competitions at the age of 8, and my dad has been my coach since the very beginning.

In my experience, my father was instrumental in encouraging me to participate in dance and gymnastics growing up, while also encouraging me to run track and play basketball and soccer for fun.

With opportunity comes pressure, and Gautier said it is important for girls not to put too much pressure on themselves. “When you are an athlete, you tend to feel that you have to perform a certain way to be successful or please everyone else, but I feel you kind of get blinded by the fact that you are doing it for yourself,” she said.

Questions to consider:

1. Why have women not gotten the same recognition and pay as male athletes in sports?

2. What does “parity” mean when it comes to gender in sports?

3. Should there be any differentiation when it comes to gender in sports and why?

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June 2, 2025
Scholar-Athlete Turned NBA Coach Returns Home: Jacque Vaughn Joins Kansas Staff

Jacque VaughnThe University of Kansas has made a significant addition to its basketball coaching staff with the hiring of alumnus Jacque Vaughn.

Vaughn returns to Kansas as an assistant coach under Bill Self, becoming the first former NBA head coach to join the Jayhawks’ coaching staff.

Vaughn brings more than 15 years of NBA coaching experience, having served as head coach for both the Orlando Magic and Brooklyn Nets. During his coaching tenure, he mentored NBA All-Stars including Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and Ben Simmons, as well as former Kansas players Markieff Morris and Jalen Wilson.

“We’re very excited to welcome Jacque and Laura into the fold,” Self said. “I’ve known Jacque from a distance for several years now and have always admired how he has conducted himself professionally and how he has treated people.”

Vaughn’s Kansas career from 1993-97 established him as one of the program’s most exceptional student-athletes. He concluded his collegiate career as the Big Eight Conference’s all-time assists leader with 804 assists, earning second-team All-American honors during his senior season under Roy Williams while maintaining extraordinary academic standards.

His scholarly achievements were equally impressive, earning Academic All-American First Team selections in both 1996 and 1997. Most notably, Vaughn received the 1997 Academic All-American of the Year award, joining Cole Aldrich as the only Kansas players to earn this prestigious national recognition. Additionally, he was honored by Diverse with the Arthur Ashe Jr. Scholar-Athlete Award in 1996, cementing his status as a role model for student-athletes nationwide.

Following his collegiate career, Vaughn was drafted 27th overall by the Utah Jazz in 1997 and enjoyed a 12-season NBA playing career that included stops with five teams and culminated in an NBA Championship with the San Antonio Spurs in 2007. He transitioned to coaching as an assistant with San Antonio before becoming head coach of the Orlando Magic in 2012, later leading the Brooklyn Nets to playoff appearances in 2020 and 2023.

“I’m truly honored and overwhelmed with excitement to return to my alma mater,” Vaughn said. “I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to bring those experiences back to the school that means so much to me.”

Vaughn replaces Norm Roberts, who recently retired, representing a powerful example of how academic excellence and athletic achievement can create pathways for continued leadership in higher education.

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May 22, 2025
What happens to the ski runs when the snow runs out?

I’m in high school now, and skiing is one of my favorite things to do — but I know it’s something my grandkids may never get to experience.

Normally the bike trails underneath the chairlift would be buried under a thick blanket of snow in the winter. But as temperatures begin to rise, more and more people are beginning to see the snow fade to brown earlier than ever before. Skiing could very well become a relic of the past — an age-old sport confined to history books and old photographs.

According to a study conducted by U.S. climate scientists in 2017 and funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Atmospheric Programs, “season length changes” due to warming winters “could result in millions to tens of millions of foregone recreational visits annually by 2050, with an annual monetized impact of hundreds of millions of dollars.”

These same scientists found that ski seasons in the United States are expected to see reductions in length, exceeding 50% in 2050 and 80% in 2090 for some locations.

The reality is that by the end of the century most resorts in the United States will have closed. While it may seem like artificial snow is the solution to this monumental problem, that is not the case. This fake snow may be able to help resorts stay afloat for the next decade or so, but it is not a viable option in the long run.

Can we make snow?

According to an article published by the American Chemical Society in 2019, snow making takes energy, mostly fossil-based, which further exacerbates the issue by contributing to more carbon emissions.

Not only are these snow makers harmful to the environment, but as temperatures begin to rise, there are less windows for snowmaking itself.

Dr. Elizabeth Burakowski, a climate scientist at the University of New Hampshire, said that snowmaking operations require temperatures that are below freezing to operate efficiently. This means that even though artificial snow can be useful in the short term, it won’t be a feasible solution in the future as the conditions needed for making that snow begin to disappear.

More importantly, artificial snow is merely a band-aid on a much larger wound. The onus is instead on ourselves to remedy this problem and not the resorts trying to scramble for answers.

Amie Engerbretson, a professional skier and climate activist, thinks that both skiers and resorts are reluctant to talk about the problem. “I think they’re scared,” Engerbretson said. “I think they’re scared of being called a hypocrite.” This fear is understandable. Many in the ski-industry rely on fossil-fuel powered lifts and snowmobiles and travel to enjoy the sport they love.

Let’s speak for the snow.

To Burakowski, speaking out means acknowledging these contradictions. “If anyone expects to be a perfect advocate, then they’re setting the bar impossibly high,” she said.

This is where the conversation around climate change usually stalls. Many athletes and outdoor enthusiasts hesitate to take a stand because they either don’t think their opinion matters or they don’t want to seem like hypocrites themselves. However, advocacy can reflect the complications as long as what is being advocated is progress toward a greener future.

Most people get too caught up in the individual aspect of climate advocacy and climate change in general. However, if we try to address this problem as individuals, we won’t make much progress.

Instead, change will come from systemic action and involvement in the public sphere. When I asked Dr. Burakowski what the best thing someone can do to make an impact, she said: “vote”.

With the way things are going, just remembering to turn off your lights when you leave a room or buying an electric car will not be the difference between sustainability or catastrophe. Real progress requires a collective effort — new climate policy, corporate accountability and government action.

Questions to consider:

• Why does the author think that his grandchildren won’t get the chance to experience skiing?

• Why can’t making snow make up for a lack of snowfall?

• What sports do you like that might be at risk from climate change?

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April 24, 2025
A Shocking Case of Academic Misconduct at Universite Libre de Bruxelles (Emmanuel Legeard)

A Flagrant and Repeated Breach of Academic Ethics (Université Libre de Bruxelles and European Journal of Applied Physiology)

For
several years now, Jacques Duchâteau and his team at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) have sought to misappropriate the 3/7 Method, a
strength-training protocol I independently developed more than 20 years
ago. Jean-Pierre Egger revealed the method — while respecting its
intellectual property — during seminars and university lectures in 2012.
Regardless of this elementary fact, ULB’s claims are contradicted by
ample evidence proving my authorship, such as correspondence with Egger
dating back to 2008, his documented public presentation at the
University of Lausanne in 2012 within the ISSUL Master’s program, and
Duchâteau’s recorded presentations at the French National Institute of
Sport (INSEP).

THE 3/7 METHOD, ALSO KNOWN AS THE LEGEARD PROTOCOL (Presented by Jean-Pierre Egger at the University of Lausanne in 2012)

(You can download the full .pdf here: (PDF) Emmanuel Legeard Le 3–7 Master en sciences du sport, Université de Lausanne)

Initially,
Jacques Duchâteau organized conferences about me — curiously, without
my involvement or consent — where the 3/7 Method was even referred to as
“Legeard’s Method”. Gradually, Duchâteau resorted to insinuating that
the method might not solely be my creation, a claim he knew was false.
My method has never been modified by anyone. At the time, I dismissed
these rumors as baseless. However, it became clear that this was a
calculated strategy to dilute my rights and claim ownership of my work.

2014: DUCHÂTEAU PRESENTS THE “LEGEARD’S METHOD” AT INSEP

Subsequently, Duchâteau’s team — including Séverine Stragier, Stéphane Baudry, and Alain Carpentier — published a 12-page article in the European Journal of Applied Physiology about my method. Shockingly, my name, Emmanuel Legeard, WAS ENTIRELY OMITTED
! This publication, titled “Efficacy of a new strength training design:
the 3/7 method”, audaciously describes the method as “new”, a blatant
misrepresentation given its development over two decades ago and its
public introduction in 2012 by Egger.

European
Journal of Applied Physiology’s predatory publishing — Predatory publishing, also write-only publishing or deceptive publishing, is an
exploitative academic publishing business model, where the journal or
publisher prioritizes self-interest at the expense of scholarship. It is
characterized by misleading information, deviates from the standard
peer-review process, and is highly opaque.

The
misrepresentation has not gone unnoticed. T.C. Luoma, a renowned
American sports journalist and editor of T-Nation — a site with over
three million monthly visitors — highlighted the issue, stating:

“That’s
why reading about the 3/7 method aroused my interest. It’s a set-rep
scheme developed by French strength coach Emmanuel Legeard in the early
2000s.”

(Source: T-Nation Forums)

2023: THE DUCHÂTEAU TEAM’S UNABASHED IDEA THEFT

Last year, Grigoraș Diaconescu, an international rugby player, shared his outrage after discovering a post by Gaël Deboeck, identified as the head of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation at ULB. Deboeck congratulated Alexis Gillet,
a doctoral student, for using the 3/7 Method to “prove” what I
demonstrated 20 years ago. Unsurprisingly, the publication made no
mention of the method’s original creator. It is now evident that ULB
intends to mislead the public into believing that their laboratory
developed the 3/7 Method. These unethical actions demand accountability.

2023: THE DUCHÂTEAU TEAM’S UNABASHED IDEA THEFT

CONSEQUENCES OF THIS ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT

If
the Université Libre de Bruxelles believes I will quietly accept the
theft of my work, they are mistaken. This scandal, indicative of
dishonesty incompatible with academic integrity, must result in
sanctions. Public funding cannot continue to
support crooked research where my work is falsely attributed to
impostors like Jacques Duchâteau, Séverine Stragier, Stéphane Baudry, Alain Carpentier, Gael Deboeck or Alexis Gillet. I
have been lenient for years, but my patience as the rightful creator
has reached its limit. I have begun publicly correcting this falsehood
online, as seen in similar cases — such as one involving the University
of Zurich — which have led to severe consequences for academic dishonesty.

Dr Emmanuel Legeard, Ph.D. — Creator, among quite a few others, of the 3/7 Method, also known as the “Legeard Method”.

This article originally appeared on Medium.

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January 27, 2025
NCAA Adds Women’s Wrestling as Championship Sport, First Tournament Set for 2026

In a historic move for collegiate athletics, the NCAA has officially recognized women’s wrestling as its 91st championship sport, marking a significant milestone for female athletes across the country. The decision, announced at the Association’s annual Convention in Nashville, Tennessee, will culminate in the first-ever NCAA women’s wrestling championship tournament in 2026.

The sport’s elevation from the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program reflects its rapid growth and increasing popularity. Currently, 76 NCAA schools sponsor women’s wrestling programs, with an additional 17 programs expected to join in the 2024-25 academic year. More than 1,200 women wrestlers currently compete at the collegiate level, with at least 45% representing diverse or international backgrounds.

“This means so much to women’s wrestling and to women’s sports in general,” said Kennedy Blades, a University of Iowa wrestler and 2024 Olympic silver medalist. “Since I was a little girl, I dreamed about being an NCAA national wrestling champion. It will fulfill so many little girls’ dreams, including mine.”

The path to championship status began in 2020 when women’s wrestling joined the NCAA’s Emerging Sports program. The sport achieved the required minimum of 40 varsity-level programs during the 2022-23 academic year, leading to a recommendation from the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics in February to advance to championship status.

To support this initiative, the NCAA Board of Governors has approved $1.7 million in funding to establish the National Collegiate Women’s Wrestling Championships. The competition will feature athletes from all three NCAA divisions competing against one another in a unified tournament format.

Rich Bender, executive director of USA Wrestling, celebrated the decision, noting that “Women’s wrestling has been an Olympic sport since 2004 and is the fastest-growing sport for young women in our nation.” The sport joins five other former emerging sports that have achieved NCAA championship status since 1994: rowing, ice hockey, water polo, bowling, and beach volleyball.

“This milestone for women’s wrestling is a declaration that women deserve equitable opportunities to compete, to lead, and to thrive,” said Ragean Hill, chair of the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics and executive associate athletics director at Charlotte. “It’s a step toward gender parity in sports and a powerful reminder that when women are given the platform to rise, they inspire generations to come.”

A dedicated women’s wrestling committee will now work with NCAA staff to develop the framework for the inaugural 2026 championship tournament. The historic decision not only provides new competitive opportunities for female athletes but also strengthens the NCAA’s commitment to expanding women’s sports participation across collegiate athletics.

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January 19, 2025
The universal language of football

We were split into two teams scrimmaging against each other. The boys I play with are competitive so there was the usual light trash talking, jersey pulling and agile foot skills.

We were playing friendly rules with no corner kicks. My teammate, Gugu, was fouled in the makeshift goalie box and dramatically fell to the ground yelling for a penalty kick.

None of us expected the coach to listen to him, but surprisingly he gave it to our team on the condition that I take the kick. All the players lined up around the box as I prepared to shoot, choosing to aim for the bottom right corner.

Two things you should know: First this is in Italy and I’m an American teenager who speaks little Italian. Second, I’m the only girl on the team.

The coach blew the whistle. I confidently ran, kicking the ball with all my strength. It went soaring over the crossbar into the fence behind. I wanted to crawl into a hole and hide.

A lifelong love of sports

Sports have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. As soon as I learned to walk, my parents introduced me to swimming (after all, 71% of earth’s surface is water). They had me learn tennis to hone my hand-eye coordination, ballet to cultivate “grace” and finally soccer to channel my boundless energy.

Ballet was the first to go. I was asked to leave for being too much of a distraction (it’s not my fault the class was boring and repetitive). Swimming followed when the early practices and relentless cycle of toxic comparison drained it of joy. Tennis, while never officially abandoned, became more of a casual hobby, a skill I maintained with occasional matches.

But soccer? Soccer was different. It endured. Not just for me, but for my siblings as well. My older brother and younger siblings all share a similar love for the sport.

My football career began at six years old with my recreational team, Purple Thunder, where the post-game refreshments — orange slices and chocolate milk — mattered more than the outcome of the game.

Next came Academy, where I was paired with a “special buddy” (one of the older kids) to help me focus and follow directions. By eight, I advanced to the competitive world of travel soccer — a commitment that has defined half of my life. Over the past eight years, I’ve played on various teams, with different coaches, in several leagues and have witnessed the growing intensity of competition as more pressure is placed on each player.

Soccer bridges divides across borders.

Soccer has taken me across the country and around the world. I’ve played soccer in Denmark, Sweden and Germany against local girls’ teams in those countries. Soccer is now a cornerstone of my identity.

When the external factors of my life changed as I grew and I matured, soccer remained the one constant.

During the pandemic, I found solace in dribbling by myself in my basement and backyard. When I moved to boarding school, leaving behind my family and home, my high school soccer team became my anchor.

Despite all the stress I endured through these changes, my love for the game only deepened as I experienced the unique camaraderie of a team composed of players from all over the world, united by our shared passion for soccer and desire to win.

I cried when my favorite coach left for another job, cried again, then confronted a different coach who left me off the roster for games. I cried when a teammate lost her brother.

Sports transcends the field.

Soccer is more than a game. It’s an art, an outlet. And a team is more than just a group of players: it’s a community, a support system that celebrates your successes and lifts you up when you fall. In those eight years, I believed I had encountered every type of soccer environment imaginable — until I arrived in Italy.

So I could play here, the extracurricular coordinator at my study abroad school called on Gianni, a host parent who works for the local soccer club, Viterbese.

Equal parts nervous and excited, I met Gianni and told him about my soccer experience — travel for eight years, high school varsity for two — and what I’m looking for — consistent, high level practices to keep me in shape.

He suggests two teams I could play with, but both are boys’ teams, and I choose one. We decide I will go to the team’s practice on Monday and he even offers me a ride.

The second he leaves, my spiraling begins as my brain conjures up all the worst possible scenarios. Monday arrives and I can’t decide whether to be filled with dread or excited to finally play.

At the field, the boys are already huddled with the coach. Now I’ll stand out even more. I get my cleats on and join the circle, suffering through an awkward introduction with the coach, then we begin.

It’s been four months now since that moment, and I’ve gone to every practice I could. I was nervous at first, especially after Gianni stopped coming and I was left to navigate it on my own. But during the drills on the first day, I quickly realized I’d been overthinking it. They weren’t a team of young Messis and Ronaldos, just regular teenage boys.

There are many ways to communicate.

While I’d played against teams that didn’t speak English before, practicing alongside them and becoming part of their team was an entirely new experience.

Learning a new language is a year-long journey, and I take it one day at a time. So while I’ve built up a solid repertoire of Italian words and calcio (soccer) vocabulary, I’ve discovered other ways to communicate — through the game itself.

Words aren’t always necessary to understand my teammates’ personalities. I can learn plenty from how they play. Whether they prefer to dribble or pass, take the shot or let someone else score, arrive early to practice, talk over the coach, yell at teammates or tug on someone’s jersey, these small choices on the field speak volumes about a person’s true character.

Playing soccer here has been living proof that actions truly speak louder than words and that sports have a unique ability to connect people. As a 16-year-old girl from Northern Virginia, I’ve formed a connection with 15-year-old Italian boys from a small city north of Rome.

It’s also a reminder that no matter how experienced or “well-versed” you think you are in a passion, there are always more opportunities to grow — if you’re willing to take the leap. I’ve embarrassed myself countless times, as I did trying to make that penalty shot after Gugu was fouled. I’ve lost the ball, missed shots, stumbled over Italian. I once even forgot my cleats.

But despite the awkward moments, I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything.

Three questions to consider:

1. How did the author manage to communicate with her teammates without knowing the language they spoke?
2. What does the author mean by soccer being more than a sport?
3. What sport or hobby are you passionate about and are there people who share that passion?

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January 17, 2025