Just doing some post-weekend catching up on stories.
Dr. Alice Dreger wrote a very good piece in the NYT about the biology of sex--inspired, of course, by the story of Caster Semenya.
A 74-year old woman received a gold medal in judo--50 years after winning the YMCA competition. Rusty Kanokogi, who was legitimately part of a judo team when she was in her 20s and took the position of an injured teammate, was disqualified after she won the competition when officials discovered she was a woman. Apparently in her gear she appeared somewhat androgynous. The outrage she felt at being stripped of her gold medal fueled her activism on behalf of women's judo.
Netball is coming to the United States! What is netball, you ask? Well it is one of the most popular women's sports in the world. And it is going to be played at the Staples Center September 11. It will be an exhibition game prior to the Sparks last regular season home game. Here is a description of the sport: Netball is similar to basketball although there is no dribbling, the ball and basket are slightly smaller, there is no backboard and players are designated to certain areas of the court. The game is fast, fun and can be played by women, men, boys and girls of all ages, sizes and skill levels. Netball is recognized by the International Olympic Committee and a strong push is underway for it’s inclusion as a participation sport.
And apparently it is growing in the US after years and years of popularity in countries such as England and New Zealand.
3 comments:
And technically it was invented in the US anyway. If netball becomes more widely known in the country of its birth it might just change that bit of the narrative of American women's basketball history which criticizes the early female basketball rules that didn't allow women to run with the ball or travel the full court. Netball is those rules taken in different direction from those that basketball took and which therefore became a different sport. Not necessarily a lesser one. Katharine Sinderson
Actually this event sounded really interesting. I would love to have been there. I just wish the person who wrote the press release understood the use of the apostrophe. KS
Well I attended the event and it was truly an amazing night - not just a netball game but a full production with entertainment and celebrities.
It was also the largest ever live netball event ever - a demonstration in front of a crowd of over 14,000 people. The largest stadium where they play netball is in Melbourne and only holds 10,000 people. Now hopefully netball will get going with the Americans - good work Netball America.
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