The bravura
performance put forth by the American women on July 10th, to win
the World Cup, was one of the best athletic events I've seen in
years. A full 120 minutes passed with China and the U. S. deadlocked.
It came down to penalty kicks--never the greatest way to determine
the champion--but what else can you do? Keep playing until players
drop or are injured because of fatigue?
Although the
winning kick was made by (soon to be jersey-less) Brandi Chastain,
let's not forget the spectacular header by Kristine Lilly in the
100th minute, that prevented a sure goal. Kudos also to old-timer
Michelle Akers, who literally gave it all she had, and was forced
to leave the game at the end of regulation time.
Finally, American
sports fans have something to be excited about, and showed it
by making this contest one of the highest TV rated women's sporting
events. Indeed, ABC realized NFL type numbers. It WAS the best-attended
women's event of all time.
Why the sudden
popularity of women's soccer?
First of all,
this was pure athletic competition, pretty much for the joy of
participation. While endorsement income is in the cards for the
players, this was not exactly something to count on, when the
girls began their soccer careers years earlier. Contrast this
with the spoiled male athletes in the highly touted sports.
Furthermore,
there was a true esprit de corps, and desire for victory
at all costs. When the team marched onto the field, Akers jumped
up and down like a schoolgirl as her teammates waved their arms
above their heads and encouraged more cheering from a crowd already
screaming its lungs out. The wave of sound, punctuated by a U.
S. Navy F-18 fly-over at the conclusion of the national anthem,
was deafening.
Think about
the last Super Bowl, when the defending champion Green Bay Packers
came out flat. Imagine--coming out flat for the world's biggest
sporting event!
But, for every
great story there has to be a negative, I guess.
In the July
15th edition of the L. A. Times, sports editor Bill Dwyre
wrote an absurd article about Briana Scurry's "illegal" move on
the save of the penalty kick, that gave the U. S. team its title.
Yes, she did test the referee by moving forward before the ball
was kicked. It is a judgement call, and the call was not made.
Scurry played the gray area and won. Get a grip, Dwyre, that's
part of competition.
I know very
well that sportswriters are at the absolute bottom of the food
chain in journalism, which itself is not known for smarts, but
this one takes the cake.
Where are
all the editorials about the many felons who get off scot-free
as long as they possess some athletic skill? Supposedly, it was
Eugene Robinson's arrest for solicitation, the night before the
Super Bowl, that ruined Green Bay's morale. O. J. Simpson was
beating women long before Nicole, and you never read much about
it. But for a goalie to tweak a slight advantage, this is valid
fodder for one of the country's biggest newspapers?
Does Dwyre
think that if defensive back were played exactly according to
the rules, a wide receiver could EVER be stopped? Do offensive
lineman never hold? What absolute rot, made even worse by his
quoting two self-styled "moral authorities."
This is sports,
for God's sake.
Measure for
measure, there was less time spent agonizing about Bill Clinton's
many immoral acts. But maybe that's the point! If neither the
president, nor male professional athletes can be role models,
maybe it IS up to these women. And you know what? They can probably
handle it.