Will females ever achieve equal footing with their male sporting counterparts?

Whether or not females will ever achieve equal footing with their male sporting counterparts is a good question. The answer however I believe is yes. Back 50 years ago if you would have asked a random person if women would ever stand equal to men in society they most likely would have said no. That being said nowadays I consider women to be right there alongside their male counterparts in society. Women have the same opportunities as men when it comes to getting an education and a good paying job. Granted we still don’t have hardly any female CEO’s but that doesn’t mean that they don’t have the opportunity to receive one of these high profile positions. Now getting back to sports, because women have risen so high in society when it comes to being compared to men, it is entirely possible that women in sports will someday stand alongside men as well. The days of the man going out and bringing home the bacon while the wife stays home to cook, clean and take care of the kids are over. It still happens, but definitely not as often as say 20 years ago and probably will happen less often in the next 20. The male patriarchy is gone, the women have fought hard for equal rights, and they have won for the most part. There are still places where women struggle but in time it will most likely change too. We have seen in our readings how sports have followed society and adapted to societies needs, making this argument more believable. Society has allowed women to rise, therefore sports will allow women to rise as well. It may not be tomorrow but eventually women will have equal footing with their male sporting counterparts.

Topic A

In today’s society sports figures have too much influence on the people who follow them. That being said, those same people who are influenced by their favorite sports figures complain continuously about how players should just shut up and play the game. I believe that athletes should take a stance on their beliefs even though they rarely do. The reason for this is because like American society, the athletes are continuously worrying about their public image. Many of them have image consultants or public relations people, who ensure that they get the maximum positive recognition. Most of what Ali said was good and needed to be said. However, when he said in the documentary that we watched in class, that 400 years ago he was a slave was completely mindless and ignorant. I understand what happened during slavery and remorseful for the way my ancestors treated blacks. That does not mean however that I am responsible nor does it allow a black man to walk around with a chip on his shoulder for something that harmed him in no way shape or form. To hear some of these guys talk, someone ignorant of the subject would think slavery ended yesterday. I do admire Ali because when he spoke, he backed up what he said. His words were not empty, he didn’t talk just because he liked to hear the sound of his own voice, he talked because he believed in what he was saying. If athletes believe that strongly about something, they should speak out on the subject regardless if what popular opinion says. Ali wasn’t always the most popular guy but he earned the respect of many people, including myself, by the way he acted on his words.

Womens Sports

In most sports, men are the main attraction, they draw the most fans and are on ESPN way more than the women. College basketball is no exception to this standard. The average basketball fan wont watch women’s basketball but will be inclined to follow mens basketball, especially around March Madness. I am a very big basketball fan so I can enjoy a good womens games just like a mens game. The difference between them, and the reason the average fan watches is because men are more exciting then women on the basketball floor. The women cannot pull off the fancy spin moves or the alley-oop dunks that men can. Which leads to a less exciting game that, unless you can appreciate good basketball, wont be selected by your television remote. Last nights game, Baylor vs Connecticut could have been a major milestone in bridging that gap between mens and womens basketball. Even the average fan would have to tune in, if only for a few minutes, to see if Baylor’s outstanding freshman could single handily give Uconn their first loss in almost 80 games. The final score had Uconn beating Baylor by 20+, an average win for the huskies, who beat opponents in the top 25 by an average of 26 points during the season. Nevertheless, leading up to the game, Brittany Griner, who stands 6 foot 8 inches tall was the only reason why Baylor was in the Final Four and the only reason Baylor was given a chance to win. Obviously Uconn proved to be too much for Baylor but even Uconn must know that next year Baylor will be the only team that will be able to play with them and possibly beat them. Brittany Griner is the best thing to happen to Womens basketball in such a long time. Average fans will tune in to see her dominate every single big girl teams can throw at her. She has already broken the NCAA’s record for blocked shots in a season as a freshman. She has three more years with unlimited potential and several records just begging her to shatter them like a soft layup.

heaven is a playground

The playground had a significant impact on the urban youth of NYC. The playground was to them what sports is to us, a getaway from the world, a place to relax and showcase your skill. The kids in Heaven is a Playground, were not particularly good in school and most of them had little or none parental influence. Therefore the basketball court was a place where they felt like they belonged, a place where they could excel and hang out with their friends in the meantime. Most of them dreamed of going to college, thanks in large part to Rodney who did his best to send the urban youth to college through basketball. Although Rodney was a tad bit selfish because he did want players to make it to the NBA so that he could collect some money. This however was not his main objection, just an added bonus if the opportunity presented itself. His main objection was to get these kids off the streets of New York, so that they wouldn’t end up getting caught up in drugs. Due to the lack of education these kids received, basketball was there way out. Even smart kids did not have sufficient grades for an academic scholarship because of the hardships these kids went through. These kids focused more on surviving then on their studies. Hanging out on the basketball courts was even more appealing because there wasn’t the gang violence on the court that there was in the street.

Team Canada gets downed by USA

If you took a pole of our class, I would imagine only a few people would actually understand what happened when team USA beat team Canada 5-3. One reason why America is hated amongst other countries is because of its arrogance regarding sports. Most hockey fans in this country were happy that our team won as I was but very few of us actually understand what that meant for Canada. Hockey is to Canada what Basketball is to the US; they expect to win gold every four years because hockey is what they pride themselves on. In America our families put up basketball hoops in our driveways whereas in Canada they build hockey rinks in their backyard. They put their entire energy into the game of hockey and if you look at team Canada’s roster, you can see that it works well. They have by far the best roster in the world and have the majority of NHL players. Back to my point of how most people do not understand the magnitude of this defeat and what it truly does to Canada. Basketball fans are visually shaken when our teams don’t perform well in the summer Olympics, double that to what Canada is going through. We haven’t beaten Canada since 1960 in Olympic hockey, so even though our hockey team has talent and is up and coming, it still is a crushing defeat for Canada. If things work out right, I believe that the next time that we will play Canada will be for the Gold Medal. Will we see a team with a damaged psyche or a team on a mission not only to beat us but to grind us in the ground? I don’t think either will happen, that is why my prediction is 3-2 Canada, a respectable loss for us, and the Gold Medal goes home.

The bloody steroid era

A story that has been analyzed by every sportswriter in America at one point and probably the story that sports fans are sick of the most is the steroid issue. Analysts are still going back and forth with how the game should treat this issue and the tainted records that it brings with it, in regards to history. Is Barry Bonds the Homerun King? Is simply putting an asterisk next to their name enough? America is sick of this story, myself included, yet the importance of it is keeping it in the news. People like Hank Aaron are extremely upset that records are being broken by illegal substances but is it necessarily these players fault? These men are simply using everything that they can find to maximize their production. Would Aaron have used steroids or HGH if he were in the “steroid era”? These are questions that we will never have an answer to but the mere possibility is whats keeping the Bonds, the McGwires, and the Rodriguezs from being banned from baseball for a period of time. The steroid era is undoubtedly a black spot on baseballs history but during the era, the MLB got what it wanted. Homeruns were up, games were higher scoring, which was entertaining to the fans therefore making MLB money. Sosa vs. McGwire was good for baseball at the time. Looking back, was it a mistake? Of course but baseball learned its lesson and it shows it with such strict testing in today’s game. The game will recover and “the era” will cool down but it will be interesting to see how history treats the so-called cheaters.

The Super Bowl

Of the two teams playing in the Super Bowl, what scenario do you favor the most? You have the city of New Orleans and the tragedy of Katrina that they had to go through and the possibility of having their first Super Bowl trophy. On the other hand you have Peyton Manning, arguably the best quarterback in the league, who needs one more Super Bowl victory to possibly be considered the best of all time when his career is finally over. The idea of New Orleans finally having something that their city could be proud of for all time is intriguing but I personally have to side with Peyton this year. Katrina was a disaster which was undeserved but as a sports fan, being able to watch what could be the greatest quarterback ever, if he wins one more ring, appeals to me much more. Furthermore, I believe full heartedly that you have to first lose in order to learn how to win. Once Peyton gets his other ring, being able to jump on the Saints bandwagon will be hard to turn down. Some could say that Peyton has several years left and could easily win another Super Bowl so give the Saints and New Orleans this one but unfortunately thats not how it works. Ask Tom Brady, another stellar quarterback who has won his fair share of Super Bowls, what the chances are of him winning one more. Of course he'll tell you he has a great team and they could make a run for another but in reality, I dont see Brady winning another Super Bowl. Peyton needs this win more than the Saints because they will be around in thirty years and Peyton won't. Very rarely do we get a chance to see real greatness and on Super Bowl Sunday, my money says we will.