Six months ago, Angela Tincher led Virginia Tech University to a historical no hit, shut out win against Team USA. Today, Tincher lists her favorite things.

Fave TV Show: Heroes

Fave Song: Anything by Rascal Flats and Keith Urban

Fave Magazine: Sports Illustrated

Fave Book: Anything by John Grisham

Fave Subject: Math

Fave Athlete(s): Jessica Mendoza and Stacy Nuveman

Fave Movie Star: Jennifer Garner

Dream Job: Playing softball for the rest of my life

Girliest Thing You Like to Do: Get a pedicure

Thanks, Angela! 

Branagh and Walsh defeated their compatriots 21-18, 21-19 for the championship.  The pair shared the  $28,000 first-place prize while Boss and Ross split $19,500 for the silver medal finish.

In winning her 38th international gold medal, Walsh tied longtime partner Misty May-Treanor for the most titles at FIVB-sanctioned events.

October 12, 2008

If you are a triathlete, there is no bigger day in this sport than the  Ironman World Championship. It is the race that defines the sport.

To get to the starting line in Kona, Hawaii, you must either be very lucky and get yourself a spot through the lottery, or be very talented, and win yourself a qualifying spot at one of the qualifying events held around the world.

Tens-of-thousands of triathletes try to get one of those coveted Ironman spots every year. Only 1,800 succeed. Competitors this year ranged in age from 18-year-olds Tyler Foster and Ariel Henbest of the host city of Kailua-Kona to 79-year-old Loren Leonard of Hawthhorne, Calif. Seventy-two-year-old Harriet Anderson of San Carlos, Calif., was the oldest female competitor.

Wellington’s repeat as champion came in a blazing 9:06:23, crushing the women’s field and beating her next closest finisher by 15 minutes. That time includes her 2:57:44 marathon which bested some of the top-10 men’s finishers.

You can track each of her segments, and even watch her cross the finish line, on the official Ironman site.

The 31-year-old Wellington won despite suffering a tire puncture on the cycling leg of the event.

Fellow competitor Rebekah Keat came to her rescue as the Australian stopped to hand Wellington a working cartridge, enabling the defending champion to continue.

“I have to say a huge thanks to Rebekah, she’s a legend,” Wellington told reporters. “To me what she did epitomises everything that is good about the sport. Without it, I wouldn’t have finished.”

The men’s race was won by Craig Alexander of Australia.

Ironman World Championship
Distance:
2.4 mile swim • 112 mile bike • 26.2 mile run

October 11, 2008

 A 15-year member of the U.S. Women’s National Team beginning in 1990, Granato is the program’s all-time scoring leader with 343 points (186 goals) in 205 games. She achieved international fame in 1998 when she captained Team USA to the first Olympic gold medal in women’s ice hockey history.

An ambassador to the women’s game, Granato has appeared on the front of a Wheaties cereal box and carried the American flag for Team USA during closing ceremonies of the 1998 Olympics. She’s also served as a role model for thousands of teenage girls who never would have realized their dream of playing collegiate or international hockey if not for her.

Last night, Granato was most deservedly inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. She become the first female of 138 members in the Hall and was honored during a ceremony at Magness Arena on the campus of the University of Denver. 

NHL legend Brett Hull said he’s privileged to be entering the Hall alongside Granato.

“I’d put Cammi’s impact on the game and the team she played for right up there with what the 1980 Olympic men’s team did for hockey in this country,” Hull said. “She’s done just as much, if not more, for grass roots hockey at that level. I don’t think they could have picked anyone better to be the first woman inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame.”

“To know I was the first woman, it was a pretty nice feeling,” she said of the honor.

If you’re a fan, the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Museum is  can be found in Eveleth, Minn (”The Capital of American Hockey”). According to their site, you can experience the thrilling game action and inspiring achievements via physical displays, exhibits, video, theater and memorabilia. Try your skills on the replica rink, see the #4 Zamboni, watch the 1980 Olympic Team as they take home the Gold and more!

October 10, 2008

Saturday 27th September saw a great turn out to our first ladies only clinic held at Castaways Beach on the Sunshine Coast.

Special guest Rebecca Colefax (Nicholson), 2003 KPWT World Women’s Champion, gave an inspirational talk and helped the ladies who attended with advice and support. 

Adventure Sports Kitesurf Australia’s senior instructor George Tarr and Noosa Kiteboarding’s senior instructor Mike Burrell took small groups of ladies through some trainer kite practice while Rebecca supported the more experienced kiters with information ranging from harness choice right through to how to start on those freestyle moves.

Rebecca then gave a final motivational question and answer time for any ladies considering kitesurfing along with the ladies who had started in the sport but had not managed to progress onto the board yet.

Visit www.kite-surf.com.au for further information and to keep and eye out for future clinics. Joint owner Adventure Sports Kitesurf Australia and female kiter Fiona Tarr is always happy to offer FREE and relevant advice to women either already kitesurfing or looking at getting into this awesome sport.

Thanks Fiona!

According to the ING Run For Something Better site, former soccer star Brandi Chastain and former gymnastics sensation Kerri Strug will trade in their old Team USA uniforms for orange running jerseys as they take on their next athletic challenge — the New York City Marathon.  

Between the two athletes, they have won five Olympic medals — three gold, one silver and one bronze– and two World Cup championships.


Brandi and Keri will serve as ambassadors for the ING Run for Something Better, a national program that promotes youth fitness and provides funding for free community and school-based running programs across the country.

To support the cause, visit orangelaces.com

What: Celebrate Columbus Day with silver-medal winning USA Women’s Softball Team

When: Monday, October 13, 2008 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.

10 a.m. - 11 a.m: One-on-one interviews with Jennie Finch, Cat Osterman and the USA Softball team in the Billie Jean King International Sports Center

11 a.m. - 1 p.m.: Jennie Finch, Cat Osterman and the USA Women’s Softball Team in the Museum’s special event space for autograph signing

1 p.m. - 4 p.m.:  Kym Hampton (NY Liberty) skills clinic and autograph signing in the Museum’s special event space

Where: Sports Museum of America - 26 Broadway (at Beaver Street) - Lower Manhattan

More info

From the NY Daily News:

If you want to be even more baffled by the International Olympic Committee’s decision to end women’s softball but keep curling, come to the Sports Museum of America, at Broadway and Beaver St., at lunchtime on Columbus Day. The whole team will be there, including outfielder Jessica Mendoza, who’s been named the new head of the Women’s Sports Foundation…  Word is the IOC doesn’t like sports that Americans keep winning.

Coach Karen Harvey arrived at FSU last year and led the team to a 3rd-place finish at NCAA’s. The team is currently ranked #3 behind Washington and Oregon. Harvey was an accomplished runner herself: she was ranked #1 in the world in the steeplechase in 1998. Assistant Coach Kevin Sullivan is a world-class runner himself who holds the Canadian national record in the Indoor 3000m.

See how some of the best collegiate runners in the nation run:

October 8, 2008

The 2009 Australian Open will offer $US 15.6 million in prize money.

While 2008 champions Maria Sharapova and Novak Djokovic each won $US 970,000, next year’s trophy-holders will carry off a comfortable  $US 1.15 million apiece based on current exchange rates (11.5 million euros).

To rake in more television money and pay the increased bills, the women are headed to a night final, sure to bolster viewer numbers and make the event the only major to play both championship matches under the lights.

We’re guessing that admission prices will also increase.

The Australian Open, the year’s first Grand Slam event, will be held Jan. 19-Feb. 1, 2009.

October 7, 2008

Flanagan shattered her own American Record in the process, running 30:22.22. That’s 4:53 per mile, for more than 6 miles in a row. She crossed the finish line absolutely dumbfounded, asking “Did I do it?” and covering her mouth with her hands as she watched the big screen and learned that she did, in fact, do it.

Flanagan has been known to keep to herself; she trains mostly alone or with her husband, unlike many professional women runners who live near each other and train together. You don’t see her writing blogs, showing up in commercials, or giving speeches. The only commercial I’ve seen her in is a Johnson & Johnson one that honored mothers; Shalane looked into the camera and thanked her mother for all of her support.

Watch Shalane open up a bit to Runners World, below: