Tuesdays Taste I Branding in Women's Sports I 4 Min Read

In a recent study conducted by the Sports Journal it was theorized that women's sports only receive 4% of media coverage because there is a lack of branding by the leagues. According to Nielsen, 84% of sports fans are interested in women's sports but there is a lack of exposure.

The study goes onto further discuss brand equity and how it can really be broken up into three different buckets. In the first bucket, is personal branding. As previously mentioned, many of the female athletes cannot make enough money playing the sport they love alone so they are forced to promote brands. For example, Ali Krieger and Ashlyn Harris stars of the U.S Women's Soccer Team recently announced a partnership with TAG Heuer to increase their incomes. It is sad that the top athletes in their sport have to create partnerships in order to make a decent living. It is unfair that the expectation for them to succeed is the same as men, the commitment and sacrifice the same, but the pay is less.

The next bucket discussed by the article was team branding. A lot of the responsibility for exposure should fall under each individual teams level of responsibility. What are they doing for grass roots efforts to promote themselves? What are they doing for youth activations to get them involved and excited about their team? It is important for women's sports to have a strong brand recognition and for people to be excited about the teams being in their city otherwise the teams will fold. For example, the Boston Breakers were a soccer team a part of the NWSL but was forced to fold due to a lack of interest. Team branding is extremely important to the success and stability of all women's leagues.

The last bucket discussed by the article is media coverage. They determine that part of the teams lack of branding is a lack of media coverage. If coverage of a sport isn't on TV, or on social media the brand isn't as recognizable to people so it doesn't resonate.

Something has got to change to increase the success of women's sports. We strongly believe that branding is part of what needs to change. As fans of the sport we must continue to be active on social media and make sure media outlets know that their is an audience.

If you would like to check out the study Click Here

Hot Cakes & Hot Takes I Key Articles from the Week | 5 min read

Megan Rapinoe Wins Ballon d’Or as World’s Best Player

source: Daily Mail

Megan Rapinoe won the Ballon d’Or as soccer’s women’s player of the year. Rapinoe won the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball as a top player of the tournament that led the US team to the World Cup title this summer.

Lucy Bronze of England scored second, and Alex Morgan was third. Lionel Messi reclaimed the men's trophy he last won in 2015 for the sixth time, a record.

Ballon d'Or has been awarded since 1956, but last year was the first to celebrate female players. Ada Hegerberg of Norway was the first ever female to receive the award in 2018.

THE NHL’S STANCE HASN’T CHANGED AND THE NWHL ISN’T FOLDING. WHERE DOES THAT LEAVE THE PWHPA?

Marie-Philip Poulin|Anne-Marie Pellerin source: The Hockey News

The PWHPA is set to hit the road again in January with its biggest Dream Gap Tour stop yet, but the NHL's unchanging stance and the NWHL's growth have left some wondering what the future holds.

Marie-Philip Poulin, Hilary Knight, Brianna Decker will all be taking part in January leg of the tour. This will be the most star-studded event of the league yet. However, the league has been running into problems with booking the ice, mainly because of the sponsoring issues. “I don’t think any of us thought this was going to be a real easy thing to do,” says former CWHL commissioner Jayna Hefford, “Anytime you do something that is purposeful and impactful and really going to be a part of history, it’s not easy. Having an advisor like Billie Jean King, she’s really quick to remind us of this all the time. What she did was not easy, it wasn’t fast and it did take a lot of courage on behalf of the athletes to stand up for what they believe in.”

Hefford also said the PWHPA has “a great relationship with the NHL” adding that while the NHL’s message hasn’t changed, the PWHPA’s goals haven’t, either. And it’s no secret that the PWHPA’s desire is a partnership with the NHL. The NWHL doesn’t look as though it’s going anywhere anytime soon, either. 

The question the author tries to answer is if the NHL’s position doesn’t change and the NWHL continues to succeed, what comes next for the PWHPA?

THE BOSTON PRIDE ARE THE MOST DOMINANT TEAM IN HOCKEY RIGHT NOW – BUT THEY’RE NOT SATISFIED YET

source: The Hockey News

Although the Pride are proud of their result during the beginning of the NWHL season having had nine consecutive wins, the Boston team still wants to improve. The players as well as the coach agree that the team still has to produce a full 60-minute effort. “We definitely have spurts where it feels dominant and it’s great and we’re getting that offensive-zone pressure and opportunities. We’re really hemming them in there,” Dempsey said. “But then we have spurts where we let off the gas a little bit and we give opportunities (for the opposition) to maybe get a chance to get back into the game. We cannot be giving those kinds of opportunities.”

Because of the way the season is structured, just one game can ruin a promising season. “It’s not like the Stanley Cup playoffs where you get to play seven games. It’s one game and done, and that can go either way in the playoffs,” Brand said.

We hope that kind of mindset and hard work is going to bring the desired results to the Boston team.

Nick D'Innocenzo on sports, success, and equality | 10 min read

Nick D'Innocenzo on sports, success, and equality

Nick D'Innocenzo. source: The Daily Texan

Nick D'Innocenzo, three-times Olympic trials qualifier, is a Massachusetts native who is passionate about helping young swimmers develop and achieve new levels. Admired by girls and boys on the team he coaches, Nick has an impressive record of personal achievements: he first qualified for Olympic Trials at the age of 17, brought two golds for team USA at Junior Pan Pacific Games in Guam, broke the National Age Group record - among other things. We caught up with Nick to ask for his perspective on success and equality.

Not her hobby: Do you think sport casts your character or, rather, you should have the right set of qualities to become a successful athlete?

Nick D'Innocenzo: I think there are a number of qualities that come through in all successful athletes. The willpower for hard work, the determination and drive to improve and succeed is the first that comes to mind. There are no successful athletes that are not self-motivated. They decide at some point in their life that they want to be successful, and they work hard at what they do because it is what they WANT to do. There are other traits, but I think it's important to remember that athletes are also human. We come in all shapes and sizes and our attitudes and personalities are still diverse. I've met all sorts of athletes in my career, both swimmers and otherwise, and while there are many that are alike, there are just as many who are unique in their own way. 

Not her hobby: What made your greatest race?

Nick D'Innocenzo: My greatest race was at my first Olympic trials in 2008. It was easily the biggest stage I'd ever have the privilege to be on. The CHI Health Center in Omaha, NE seats 17,000 people, the largest crowd I've ever seen at a swim meet. At 17 I was extremely nervous. I'd only just made the cut in the 200 individual medley, my only event for the trials that year. I knew I had just one shot to get the race right and to make matters worse, the 200IM was right at the end of a very long week of events. I'd been waiting 8 days to finally get my chance to compete. At trials you must be in the ready room 30 minutes before you're preliminary heat is scheduled to go off. You sit in the "ready room" waiting for your turn to walk up the steps and out onto the deck in front of the massive crowd. I really can't remember much from those few moments on deck behind the block before my race. I'm sure I was extremely nervous, but looking back, all of my best races were in situations of extreme pressure. I think I just fed off the energy of the atmosphere because I ended up dropping a ridiculous 4 seconds from my previous best time that got me qualified for the event. Keep in mind these were the times where for me as a swimmer, I was fighting to drop half or 3/4 of a second. I'd gone from a time of 2:06 to 2:02, and it was even enough to qualify me for semi-finals. My first Olympic trials appearance and I'd made top-16 in preliminaries, I was dumbfounded. It's actually quite funny looking back because I went back that night to swim in the semi-finals and I swam much worse than I did in the morning. It didn't matter to me at that point, though. I'd far exceeded my expectations for myself, and I was very proud. There really are a number of races that I could talk about here. Some that were on a larger, international competitive level where I placed higher overall. There are others where I can remember great races between myself and other highly skilled swimmers. Or relays where I got to share victory with my teammates. I could go on, but I won't.

Not her hobby: Your sister, Maggie, has been to Olympic Trials with you. For her as a female athlete, would you say the journey to the top was similar to yours?

Maggie D'Innocenzo. source: SwimSwam

Nick D'Innocenzo: Maggie's journey was similar to mine in that we both had a very fast, meteoric rise through the top tiers of the sport. The difference, however, is that my rise happened right at the end of my high school career, and hers was some years earlier. For me I didn't really break into the top of the national level until the end of my junior year in high school. Maggie was more competitive much younger. This I think was both good and bad. It meant that she had more experience than me at being nationally competitive from a younger age. It also meant that after getting so fast so quickly, she plateaued a bit in the latter years of her high school career. For me, getting very fast very quick late in my high school career meant gaining a lot of positive attention from college recruiters. For Maggie it made college recruiting very stressful, I think. She did not have the same sense of security and confidence that I did in searching for colleges. In the end she ended up picking a school that she would ultimately transfer out of by the end of her sophomore year in college. Where I rode momentum out of high school and into college, Maggie I think fought more hardship in overcoming high expectations. 

Not her hobby: With International Swimming League on the scene, do you think swimming is ahead of other sports in terms of equal opportunities for men and women?

Nick D'Innocenzo: I think the sport of swimming lends itself quite well to both men's and women's competition over many other sports. I think this has been the case long before the arrival of the International Swimming League. If anything the International Swimming League has taken what has existed in the sport for a long time and brought it to a bigger stage. There are many sports where women's leagues hardly exist at all, let alone receive much attention. American Football is one that comes to mind. I think Basketball and Baseball are examples of this as well. While the WNBA and Softball do exist, they're far lower profile on the national and international stage than their male league counterparts. I think with the exception of high school leagues and NCAA, Swimming competitions have always held both men's and women's competitions at the same event. In this respect I think it is ahead of the other sports I mentioned. There are other sports, however, like track & field and soccer (or European/International Football) that also do a good job of promoting women's competition as well as men's.

Not her hobby: High school years have the highest rates of dropouts from sports, especially for girls. What advice would you give someone who is in doubt?

Nick D'Innocenzo: For a high school athlete, I think it's an important time to take a hard look at what you've done so far in your sport. If you've been successful, why? What has made you successful? Can you continue to improve that recipe for success to further yourself in your sport? If you can come up with answers with relative ease, I think you're probably someone who is keen on their sport and will continue to pursue it. If you've lacked success, I think it's important to be honest with yourself in understanding why you've been unsuccessful. I think a lot of times high school athletes do a sport because they have always done it, they've never critically examined why they do it. For these kids, I think sometimes without this examination, they lack self-motivation. If a high school kid is having doubt about their sport, I think that means they're overdue for a hard look in the mirror. They must ask themselves why they do it, and be honest with their answer. I think it's also important to mention here that sometimes people end up doing a sport for so long without thinking about it that they don't realize they really don't like it at all. I think at a young age it's hard to make the decision to give up on something that has always been a part of your identity, but I think it's better to decide to do something you like doing rather than continue doing something you've always done without thinking about it. People change jobs and career paths all the time, there is nothing wrong with deciding to pursue other things, especially if you'll be more passionate about pursuing something else.

***

We thank Nick for his time and honest answers to our questions!

Hot Cakes & Hot Takes I Key Articles from the Week I 6 Min Read

And we are back with another steaming hot cup of tea featuring the key articles from the past week!

Yankees Hire Female Hitting Coach, First Female Coach in MLB

The New York Yankees have hired Rachel Balkovec as a full time hitting coach for the club. She is believed to be the first female in the position. The Yankees said they hired her because is a good coach period. 

While we applaud the Yankees for hiring her, we do find it a bit concerning that more women don't have a role at MLB Clubs. What can be done to make more opportunity for women at these clubs? There needs to be a change in culture so that its not groundbreaking that a women was hired by a professional mens team. We hope that as Rachel finds success at one of the most reputable clubs in baseball then other teams will follow suit and hire more women. 

Women In Football and Barclays Partner

Barclays and Women in Football announced this week a 3 year partnership where Barclays will become a leading partner of Women in Football. The commitment of Barclays continues the recent string of brands that have stepped up to support the equal opportunity and treatment of women's professional sports. As we have mentioned Budweiser Canada, Secret,  and so many more have shown an unprecedented support to women. 

It is interesting that brands have continued to show their support to the women athletes and yet their is a serious lack of exposure to women's games. The television rarely shows a women's game on. One would think we the brand support that television exposure would follow. We hope that the brand support is phase 1 in a change of narrative to women's sports finally being viewed as equal.

Women Wrestling Program Setting the Standard

The wrestling program at the University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point is the first women's wrestling program in the mid west. In 1994 there were 804 women's wrestling programs nation wide, in 2018 there was 16,562 nation wide. There are official scholastic championships in 18 states, but Wisconsin isn't one of them which makes the story of the wrestling team at Stevens Point extremely inspiring. 

The coaches and athletes had to fight to be recognized by their university. Through the use of convincing data they continued to push their athletic director to recognize them. It is inspiring that they were able to continuously advocate for themselves and get what they deserve. As the sport of wrestling continues to grow it will be interesting to see how many more women will have to fight for equal treatment. 

UCONN vs TENNESSEE Basketball Rivalry Lives !

The rivalry lives!! This article takes us through a timeline of why tensions are at an all time high between UConn and the Lady Vols of Tennessee. In order to continue growing interest in women's sports we need rivalries like this one to heat things up! While Pat Summit may be gone now, the hatred between UConn and Tennessee is very much a live. They face off for the first time in thirteen years on January 23rd 2020. We can't wait to see how things develop on the court! 

Female Friday I How Can Mom's Support Featuring Adrienne I 10 Min Read

We have an extremely special #FemaleFriday for you this week. We caught up with Adrienne to learn more about her story as a female athlete, and now that she has children how she supports them in their athletic journey. Adrienne discusses some really powerful thoughts of how best can mothers ensure that their daughters have the same opportunities and treatment as men. 

You might be wondering who is Adrienne? 

Well, Adrienne was an athlete growing up in small town in Ontario in the mid 80s where she begged her parents to let her play hockey but girls didn’t play hockey in their town. Thus, she picked a different sport and our interview below explains how her experience in sports has impacted her life. Furthermore, now that she is a mother of two daughters we learned more about her perspective as a mother and how she continues to fight for women to be treated and represented equally. 


Not Her Hobby: Adrienne, you mentioned that sport both built you up and brought you down a bit. Could you share a bit more about your experience? What sport did you play? Were there equal opportunity for women? 

Adrienne: I was a horseback rider. I fell in love with horses at an early age and was on a horse from the time I could walk. I went to horse camp a few times and I started formal lessons around the age of 9. I have a younger brother who is 4 years younger then me who was also horse crazy. Riding at the youth level is heavily dominated by girls, probably 10 girls for every one boy. You would think we would have more opportunities. But back in the early 90s the pro level of the sport was heavily dominated by men even though it is a fully coed competition sport. 

Riding is a community of the most privileged of privileged people. I did not come from money but I was good. Really good. So my natural talent propelled me in the sport, the sport where money can buy you wins. My brother was also really good. He got noticed a lot because he was the boy in the sport. I was one of the many many girls. 

By the age of 16 my parents said I had to stop riding as I also played high school basketball and developed knee issues, medical care for orthopedic issues in our small town were very limited.  Thus, I was told i had to stop riding because of my knee issues. I sold my horse, but I stayed in the sport by grooming for my brother at horse shows and doing the odd exercises ride for others. I stopped playing basketball too, it was never my passion but it was fun except for I wasn’t one of the jock crowd and the girls on the team would barely speak to me. So I gave it up. 

Right around the time I stopped riding full time my riding coach was charged with statutory rape of one of my best friends. Another unnamed girl was also part of the civil suit and everyone thought it was me. But It wasn’t, it was another one of my friends who had come and picked up her horse one day and was never heard from or seen again, just shortly before he was charged. The same coach who raped my friends told my parents just before they made me quit to stop backing me and put all the time and money in to backing my brother because girls were a dime a dozen and he had a better chance of making it then I did. I only found this out in the last few years when my mother finally admitted it to me, when I questioned why they had made me quit instead of trying to get me medical help for my knee issues. 

However, it all makes sense now. My coach used to come on to me all the time. I always just brushed it off and would crack jokes and move on and never let myself be alone with him. In my mind it was his revenge, to tell my parents to back my brother and not me. His wife who was also a coach at the barn I rode out of also believed that the unnamed girl in the suit was me too, as she would call my home and threaten me and tell me I wasn’t welcome at the barn. She would call and just breath in to the phone for minutes at a time and then scream at me. I haven’t ridden since I was 19, my brother is enjoying an amazing career as a pro horse back rider. Living the dream I always had.


Not Her Hobby: Now that you have passed the torch onto your daughter, have you felt that she has more opportunity than you? If not, how could her experience be improved?

Adrienne: My oldest daughter plays lacrosse, she is a goalie. She definitely has had more opportunities then I did but we had to fight for them more then we should have had to. Often we had to fight against male coaches who seemed to enjoy having power over tweens and teenage girls. A lot of dads who had played and coached to make sure their daughters had a spot on the team. 

When she wanted to play boys field lacrosse we supported her in that, I can’t say the parents of the boys were all supportive though. One night shortly after try outs for a u16 team a mom another player on the team came up and stated chatting with me, after a little while she said “isn’t it a shame that girl goalie took the spot a way from a deserving boy” to which I responded “oh you mean my daughter, who obviously got put on the team just because she is a girl, I guess she didn’t have to actually be better to get the spot?” The other mom turned ten shades of red and ran away. 

We as a family understand the value of sport. When our oldest was 16 we put everything we had in to her and her sport so she could follow her dream of playing NCAA lacrosse. I am proud to say through her hard work, a million miles put on our car, more early morning wake ups then I care to count, drives and flights to tournaments all over the USA, her dedication on and off the field paid off and she was offered a full scholarship to play lacrosse and be the starting goalie as a freshman. We are immensely proud of her.


Not Her Hobby: You brought up a powerful question/conversation of what can we do as mothers to help female athletes have equal opportunity. What do you believe some of the keys to being a good advocate are? Do you have any tips for our readers?

Adrienne: This is something I am really passionate about female youth sport. So we as mothers need to see the value in sports for our daughters in the same way dads see it for their sons. We need to make sure the dads know the value of sport for girls because we can’t change this alone. We have all seen the stats on what happens when girls have sport in their lives. We know the positive impact it can have on educational outcomes, teen pregnancy rates, drug use and so many more things yet time and time again I have heard or seen parents give up on their daughters in sport because “they have gone as far as they can go in their sport” so they stop funding it. 

They stop offering to drive them to their games, competitions and practices. Because why “waste” money on girl who doesn’t have the option to make this her career? Boys always have the option to make their sport their career in many parents eyes. There is always that chance they will make the NHL, MLB, CFL/NFL, NBA, NLL, USL whatever the male pro league is for their sport.  It’s probably not even a conscious thought, but it’s there. I see it at the fields and the rinks, I see it. 

The key to being a good advocate for our daughters I believe is saying yes you can. You want to try out for the “boys” midget AAA team I will take you, yes. You want to hit the gym and need a ride yes I will.  Never say no to our daughters dreams. This one is a hard one because it can involve confrontation, but call people out, women and men for misogynistic behaviors, every time. 

For example, in one of the recent olympics when my daughter was in middle school, they played the men’s hockey gold medal game in the gym and the whole school watched. There was no viewing of the women’s gold medal game! So I called the school and spoke to the principal and let him know I was not ok with that, and flat out asked him, if did he not feel the women’s game was worthy of the kids time like the men’s was? 

Or when my daughter’s lacrosse team at a private sports school went undefeated for the whole season didn’t even warrant a Facebook post, but the men’s hockey team winning the private school championships warranted a full school assembly and celebration. I called the school and let them know just how wrong that was, if we celebrate  men’s wins we celebrate women’s wins. Don’t let that dad next to you bad mouth the women ref, mock the girl coming out her closet she had to get changed in, hell don’t let your girls have to get ready in closets or bathrooms, call out the league and make sure they are treated equally. Call out bad sports behavior, i refuse to call it sportsmanship, every time. Not some of the time, but all the time.

We need to teach our daughters strong is good, being the best is good, do what it takes to win, that they deserve to win you can still be feminine and tough the two are not mutually exclusive.  Let’s stop teaching our girls to sit back and let boys take the wins, the spots on the team, or the scholarships. We need to teach them they have the same rights as boys to play or participate in any sport they want. 

Its important that we change our language as mothers to players, athletes, coach, ref don’t yell let’s go boys if their is a girl on the team yell the teams name let’s go, don’t say things like that was a nice save/goal/stop/hit for a girl. We should simply call it a good save/goal/stop/ hit as if it’s good it doesn’t matter the gender of the player who did it. We need to take our daughters to watch whatever the highest level of their sport is, pay to get in and not only support the women playing but show our daughters that they are worthy of being paid by paying to see others play.


Not Her Hobby: As a mother a 20 and 3 year old what do you hope is different about the 3 year olds experience compared to your older daughter and yours in the world of sports? How do we get there?

Adrienne: I can only hope that by the time my three year old is ready to play she has more role models to look up to. We are lucky she has our older daughter and all her hockey and lacrosse playing friends to look up to but not every girl has that. I feel the work being done by the PWHPA and the women’s USA soccer team just to name a couple is so important. It is our time to rise up and be paid to play. 

It is time for equal air time, it is the time for equal opportunities for women to coach at a high level. It is no longer OK to sit back and watch male coaches control our daughters future in sport. It is not ok that in the GTHL a lot of the AAA coaches are paid coaches and experts, and girls who are just as good have some dad who is volunteering his time to coach our daughters which I respect but just because you played hockey as a kid doesn’t make you qualified to coach high level female hockey. 

It is not ok that it is so hard for female hockey leagues to get good refs or staff because girls hockey is still seen as less than. I want there to be a world where there is an opportunity for my daughter to play in JRs on Boxing Day. I want to see Lacrosse be made an official Olympic sport. I want to be able to turn the TV on any night of the week and see a women’s hockey game or a men’s hockey game. I really hope that that my 3 year old won’t really remember a time when women’s sport being viewed by the masses on a regular bases wasn’t the norm.

The last part of your question how do we get there is a great one and one I wish I knew the answer to. I think the best answer I can give right now is education, as a mother educate yourself on just how far your daughter can go. If she gets there and you both feel she has farther to go, then you need to put on the gloves and fight for your daughter.  Gather like minded moms and dads and fight for our daughters, sisters, cousins and aunts to be able to play the sport they love. #momsgotyourback


We are incredibly grateful for Adrienne's insight, advice and sharing her experiences with us. If you are looking to connect with Adrienne or want to discuss more from a mothers perspective how to support our daughters, and sisters message us! 

Tuesday's Taste: How can we support the fight for #EQUALPAY I 3 Min Read

Looking for ways to show support to the women fighting for #EqualPay? First we can start by going out, and showing up to their games. It is vital that their attendance continues to grow so that investors feel like there is exposure and an audience. However, for many of us the sports teams are too far geographically to support. Many of the leagues offer "virtual tickets" which if you buy a ticket online they will give it to a youth player in the area to attend the game. 

Most notably if you are looking to support the Professional Women's Hockey Player Association you can buy a virtual ticket Here

Fans can also show support to women's teams by using social media to discuss the outcomes of their games. There needs to be a movement that gets broadcast stations to buy in to that people care about the women's games. If they see the social media support than they will be more likely to show the games on their airwaves. 

These women are fighting for #Equal pay, treatment and opportunity for not only themselves but future generations. We want the younger generations to have the same opportunity as men. If you believe in this sentiment than support these teams and leagues any way that you can afford too. Tweeting support is free! Lets rally behind these trail blazing women!

Hot Cakes & Hot Takes Key Articles of The Week | 7 min read

Hot Cakes & Hot Takes Key Articles of The Week

Hayley Wickenheiser inducted into Hockey Hall of Fame

Hayley Wickenheiser photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

On November 18, 2019 Canadian legend was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. In her speech, she thanked her family and her mom in particular. Apparently, not only her parents said yes to her playing the game that girls were not playing at that time, but her mom set up leagues in every town they moved to. 

She also talked about the debt her family went into for her every four years around the Olympics, and how she wasn't even able to help them retire or pay off their mortgage. Obviously, many men inducted into the Hall of Fame before her were able to do that as professional athletes.

Wickenheiser is the seventh woman to be inducted into HHOF. Watch her speech here:

Korda sisters play down rivalry in the hunt for the CME Group Tour Championship prize

Nelly Korda, the top-ranked American golfer source: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images

Pitting women against each other never stops. Even if the women in question are not only friends, but sisters. American golfers Jessica and Nelly Korda say there is no rivalry between them despite the public's desire to see some.

Since younger sister Nelly joined the LPGA Tour in 2017, Jessica had never seen her win a tournament. So when such an opportunity was mentioned, the elder sister started crying.

"I was not only proud of her from a sister standpoint but a professional standpoint. Seeing how she's grown. Seeing her make so many mistakes coming down the stretch and then just fighting back and not giving up," - Jessica Korda

 Nelly became the top American player in her third season on the LPGA tour. This week both sisters compete for the largest prize in women's golf history: $1,5 million.

"Everyone wants to build this rivalry between us. And yes, obviously we are competitive. But at the same time we are not mean. We are always going to help the other one out. At the end of the day, we are sisters. We are best friends," - Jessica Korda

 

Megan Rapinoe Surprises Teen Soccer Star with News She’s Sports Illustrated's SportsKid of the Year

Ally Sentnor

Ally Sentnor, 15-year-old soccer player from Hanson, Massachusetts learned she was crowned Sports Illustrated SportsKid of the year from.. Megan Rapinoe herself! Megan was the first to congratulate Ally. "I didn't even know they knew who I was", said Ally in awe to hear the news from her hero. 

Sentnor is a supporter of the U.S. women's team. In her interview with People Magazine, she says she looks up to all of the players on the team. She was also wearing the team's jersey during the interview.

Ally will receive the award on December, 9 in New York City. You can watch a short story about her by Sports Illustrated here:

Women's EURO 2021 qualifying: how it stands

the team of the Netherlands

As UEFA's women EURO 2021 qualifying is in progress, it is important to notice this: there's a record 47 teams competing for 15 places alongside the host, England, in the finals.

Current holders of the title, the Netherlands, compete in group A and currently are ahead of everyone else in the group with six victories in six games. Kosovo has their debut in the same group. 

Another new-comer, Cyprus, compete in group E alongside Finland, Portugal, Scotland, and Albania.

On November, 12 Poland were the last team to open qualifying. They played in a city of Lublin with a record crowd of 7,528. The game finished with a 0-0 draw against a Spain side that had won their previous 22 qualifiers including their first two games in the group.

The group winners and the three runners-up with the best record against the sides first, third, fourth and fifth in their sections will join hosts England in the final tournament.

Germany have won eight titles and Norway two, while Sweden and the Netherlands have one each.

Tuesday Taste: Gender Inequality in Sports Broadcasting | 4 min read + watch a video

Gender Inequality in Sports Broadcasting

It's both athletes and other women with careers in sports who get judged on the basis of their gender, not their ability.

Let us begin with a taste of what it feels like to be a female commentator in a male-dominated sports industry. Take a moment to watch this 4-min 2016 award-winning Just Not Sports public service social ad - Women in Sports "Face" Harassment. Real men were asked to read out loud real twits directed at some prominent sportscasters - to their face. The hashtag of the campaign was #MoreThanMean.

According to Quartz.com, 90% of commentators and anchors are men. Vicki Sparks, who made history by being the first woman to comment on a live World Cup match for British Television, faced criticism for the pitch of her voice. As former defender for Chelsea Jason Cundy put it on air for national television, "Ninety minutes of hearing a high-pitched tone isn’t really what I like to hear." He was immediately confronted by the host who called him "a sexist pig". Cundy later apologized.

Another trailblazer is Jessica Mendoza, the first female to call a nationally televised Major League Baseball playoff game and a Sunday Night Baseball analyst for ESPN. Mendoza, a two-time Olympic gold medalist for the US softball team, admits to TIME she doesn't open twitter until Thursday after a Sunday game she commented on. That's the social media strategy she adopted to keep herself level. She's been blamed for having a softball background as well as being a female, among other things.  

Jessica Mendoza signes autographs Source: TIME magazine

Kim Jones of the NFL Network says she gets a lot of comments about how her good looks are the only reason she has that job. At the same time, she gets called ugly regularly. An ironic dual-standard women have to face in so many professional areas. If you don't put on makeup, you don't look professional. If you put on makeup, you're not serious. 

As Julie DiCaro, a sports talk radio host from Chicago shared with The Chicago Tribune: 

"As if some of my earliest memories aren’t sitting on my dad’s lap watching the Bears and Cubs. … Sports belong to all of us.”

Hot Cakes & Hot Takes Key Articles of The Week I 8 Min Read

As always we have another installment of "Hot Cakes and Hot Takes" key articles from the past week! While you have your Sunday Funday brunch, make sure to catch our hot takes on key articles of the week. It was a big week in the world of female athletes.. LFG!

1. U.S Hockey Forward Shares Her Story of Grief

Sophia Shaver graduated from the University of Wisconsin at Madison this past May. She was a integral part of the squads 2019 national championship win. However, during her sophomore year she received a phone call that changed her life forever.  Her 17 year old brother, Drake, had taken his life. With complete shock and dismay she went home to be with family, speaking of how happy Drake was.

In the article, she further discusses her grieving process and how it effects her daily life. She also explains the toll it took on her on ice play. It must be incredibly difficult to come forward with a story so personal to her, but important in efforts to prevent suicide.

Shaver is now on the PWHPA dream gap tour in an effort to #Growthegame. She is amongst the 200+ top professional female athletes that are working towards a sustainable and united professional women's hockey league. It is an incredibly moving piece that is special to know that she is not only using her platform for growing the game but also for something so personal to her. She made a fan of us! #TeamShaver

2. Budweiser Steps Up For PWHPA

Budweiser Canada continues to support the PWHPA #DreamGapTour in a huge way. They rolled out a #ForTheGame campaign that is asking users to show their support by tweeting and sharing their support! Budweiser realizes that they cannot alone support the dream gap tour that they need to get fans engaged. Thus, they released a a slick campaign video that plays on "the hockey song."

Budweiser USA had a significant impact on the growth and sustainability of the NWSL (National Women's Soccer League) so it is likely that Budweiser Canada is using this model to help the PWHPA. It is an extremely well thought out marketing campaign that easily gets not only the players to tweet out, but more importantly fans can tweet support with an easy click. It is also great publicity for Budweiser to be supporting women who are working tirelessly for one sustainable league that would showcase top talent.

3. Oregon Ducks Fly Past U.S.A Basketball

For only the second time in history, and the first since 2014, team U.S.A basketball was defeated by a collegiate basketball team. The Oregon Ducks beat team U.S.A 93-86 in an all out battle. Sabrina Ionescu scored 25 of her 30 points in the second half to lead the Ducks to victory.

Team U.S.A is gearing up for Tokyo 2020 and are on a tour against the best teams in the world to prepare. They have not lost a major international game since 2006 versus Russia. As they look ahead to Tokyo they take their battle against the Ducks as a learning experience. This will ultimately lead them one step closer to winning a gold medal as it will restore their drive and ensure that they don't let their guard down. 

Furthermore, this game acts as a reason to be excited about the future of women's basketball. The Ducks showed talent and heart which means eventually they will bring this passion over into the WNBA. The future is not only bright for Team U.S.A but women's basketball in general. 

4. U.S Women's National Team Wraps Up 2019

The U.S Women's National Team wrapped up their 2019 appearances last weekend with matches versus Sweden and Costa Rica. It was an incredible year for the National team between winning the World Cup and their lawsuit versus U.S Soccer for equal pay and treatment. 

Ahead of the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, the team looks to continue to soar to new heights and win a gold medal in the year following the World Cup which has never been done. The team might look a bit different upfront with Alex Morgan having a baby just four months before the Olympics. Although she vows that she will return and play. The team will still be lead under the dynamic leadership of Carli Lloyd and Megan Rapinoe. 

They are a remarkable group that is doing just as much to lead the way off the field as they are on it. We will be cheering them on every step of the way in 2020 on and off the field! 

5. Australia Women's Team To Be Paid The Same As Men

All Hail the land down undah!! The Football Federation of Australia announced that they had reached an agreement with their women's and men's soccer team working towards breaching the gender pay gap. 

This is a history making pay structure and truly one that the U.S Soccer Federation should take note of. " The deal gives players an increased portion of World Cup and Asian Cup prize money. The federation also agreed to give both teams equal resources, upgrade the parental leave policy and set money aside for youth football programs." 

Australia is setting a precedent that we hope countries around the world are watching. Lets Go Aussies!

Tuesday's Taste I Mary Cain Alleges Abuse I 5 Min Read

Mary Cain became a phenomenon across the country at the age of 16 as she was merely in high school yet qualified for the Olympic Trials in 2012. Shortly after her qualifier she was began training at the Nike Oregon Project under Coach Alberto Salazar.

Cain was the youngest US track and field athlete to make the World Championship team, but is now alleging that she was "emotionally and physically abused by a system designed by Alberto [Salazar] and endorsed by Nike."



Cain is claiming that Salazar would shame her in front of others on the team when she did not reach the required weight targets which caused her to put extra pressure on herself to lose weight. Furthermore, she said that her low weight caused her to miss her period for three years, leading to lower levels of estrogen and five broken bones. 

She recalls that when she was signed by the Oregon project in 2013 she was motivated to be the "best female athlete ever" but she soon found herself just trying to survive. She claims that upon her arrival, an all male Nike staff convinced her that in order to reach her goals she would have to become thinner and thinner.

She believes that this abuse lead to her suicidal thoughts and her cutting herself. Nike is looking into the "deeply concerning allegations." However, it is worthy noting that Salazar's methods have previously been called into question by the U.S Anti-Doping Agency that found him guilty of conducting experiments with supplements and testosterone that were bankrolled and supported by Nike. As a result Salazar has been suspended for four years and the Nike Oregon project has been shut down. 

However, from the darkness of Cain's story into the light comes dozens of female athletes to her aide. Women supporting women should be the positive story line arc from this. Let Salazar slowly fade into the darkness of oblivion, and let the lesson be to support each other in intense situations. 

Quickly reacting to Cain sharing her story was long distance Olympian Shalene Flanagan who tweeted out her support “I’m so sorry, @runmarycain that I never reached out to you when I saw you struggling. I made excuses to myself as to why I should mind my own business. We let you down. I will never turn my head again.”

Another former American Olympian, Amy Yoder Begley, tweeted that she was kicked out of the Oregon Project after finishing sixth in the 10,000 meters at the United States track and field championships.“I was told I was too fat and ‘had the biggest butt on the starting line,’” she wrote, “This brings those painful memories back.” 

American olympian, Kara Goucher, who also trained at the Oregon project tweeted that she "has stories to match all of Mary’s claims and so much more.” These women coming out and supporting Cain's story is important as its often nice for people to feel validated and believed. 

It is critical that moving forward women support each other not only in the aftermath but during the actual time frame of events themselves. These stories are painful, and raw but we hope that the female running community can lean on each other and building something stronger.