Women Talk Sports

LADIES TALK LUGE

Whose idea was it to start the group? The idea to start the group came from a few of the heads of our SL network. the network consists of area specific sites aimed at promoting and encouraging luge in their area. For instance we currently have http://www.sydneystreetluge.com , http://www.brisbanestreetluge.com , http://www.canberrastreetluge.com as well as several others in the pipeline. The idea was really to promote female involvement within Street Luge. Australia has not only the largest luge population but the most women, even so we only have five. The idea stemmed and snowballed from there, I was bought on board, due to my availability, at the time there were only three riders, that has slowly grown. How were they first exposed to luge? Itandrsquo;s the case with most ,if not all, of the girls that theyandrsquo;ve gotten into luge simply by knowing someone who was already in the sport. Be it through spouses or friends the general reaction has been andlsquo;screw standing on the si [Read More]

published December 28, 2010 at 4:00pm EST

BRINGING CHANGES TO THE 2022 WINTER OLYMPIC GAMES

The United States Olympic Committee USOC is not only looking to further the athletic accomplishments but make sustainable environmental changes to the Winter Games. And with the bid for the 2022 games being award in 2015, they must move fast with their efforts. This began with naming Andrew Liveris and Dow Chemical the worldwide partner in the Olympics for the next decade. During the last Winter Olympic Games and#40;the Vancouver 2010 gamesand#41;, the United States held the most medals, with 9 gold, 15 silver and 13 bronze. With dominance in the areas of snowboarding, Nordic combined and skiing, it only makes since that the United States is looking to capture the 2022 bid.andnbsp; With areas like Denver and Reno-Tahoe looking to host, the USOC is looking to make process with the International Olympic Committee in hopes of bring great changes to this world celebration.andnbsp; With the top skiers, snowboarders and speed skaters, the United States is looking to continue its dominance of the W [Read More]

published November 30, 2010 at 12:13pm EST

ON CHAMPAGNE, CIGARS, CELEBRATING, AND CHICKS (I.E., FEMALE ATHLETES)

Iandrsquo;ve been thinking a lot about the Canadian womenandrsquo;s hockey team post gold medal controversial celebrations in the last 24 hrs. My initial reaction was andldquo;What?, this is not good for womenandrsquo;s sportsandldquo;. I have some new thoughts after taking a step back. 1. I realize my reaction was very US-centric and most Canadians feel this is not newsworthy and#40;as Michelle posted in my previous blogand#41; or a big deal. Is my reaction, and of those who share this viewpoint a result that Canada won the game and put a dent in American chauvinism? 2. This issue has definitely brought to light the double standards for behavior that exist for men and women, and athletes are no exception. On one hand I thought, andldquo;Why not? Celebrate, you won the gold medal!andhellip;the men do it all the time!andrdquo; But on the other hand, is following the menandrsquo;s lead or reproducing male celebratory traditions a good thing?andnbsp; I keep thinking back to the 1999 World Cup when Brandi Cha [Read More]

published February 27, 2010 at 1:47pm EST

GAMEON PODCAST: ERIN HAMLIN FROM VANCOUVER, PLUS LOTS MORE!

On a special Fun Friday episode of the show, the ladies of GameOn talk to Luger Erin Hamlin from Vancouver and hear about the challenges faced by all Lugers during the Vancouver Games. We also discuss major Olympic drama: Plushenko's Platinum Medal, Scotty Lago's not-so-risquandeacute; photo that caused him to leave the Games, Vonn vs. Mancuso and#40;who really cares?!and#41;, and Johnny Weir vs. Small-Minded French Announcers and#40;hint: Johnny wins!and#41;. Plus, we discuss why LT's teary goodbye doesn't bother us in the slightest ... get teary eyed ourselves talking about snowboarder Kevin Pearce ... have a laugh about a world-record-setting Snuggie Night in Cleveland ... and touch upon Howard Stern's planned Beauty Pageant of Tiger's Former Mistresses andmdash; four have signed on so far. andnbsp; LINKS FROM TODAY'S SHOW: Listen to our first interview with Erin Hamlin.andnbsp;andnbsp; Plushenko's gone Platinum ...andnbsp; Scotty Lago's photo andmdash; you make the call ... risquandeacute; or no?andn [Read More]

published February 26, 2010 at 12:24pm EST

LUGE: "I WOULD RATHER DIE THAN BE CALLED A WOMAN"

That's the message I am getting after the start of the men's single luge competition was moved farther down the track in an attempt to temper the high speeds that seemed to result in the death of Georgian luger, Nodar Kumaritashvili,* during a training run last Friday.This story is not breaking news of course, but I started to hear the grumbles about the start's move pretty much the day it started. Why? Well, one because it corroborates the party line that Kumaritashvili died because of luger error and not because of the course, which is on record as the fastest in the world. And one would think that given the pride those involved in the endeavor had over the speediness that they would have taken certain precautions. But I guess all that hubris gets in the way of covering steel beams with padding. But the second and more relevant and#40;to meand#41; reason for the disgruntledness is because the new start is the women's singles start. I am sorry--it was where the women were slated to starte [Read More]

published February 17, 2010 at 9:21am EST

GAMEON PODCAST: "SPEEDY" PETERSON AND KATIE UHLAENDER

As you know, the ladies love their Olympics. Erica andamp; Melissa discuss Opening Ceremonies, plus the first exciting weekend of Vancouver, from Moguls to Nordic Combine. Plus, Danica's NASCAR debut and thoughts on the SI Swimsuit edition. Plus, it's Melissa's day to shine, as she interviews Aerialist Jeret "Speedy" Peterson and Skeletor Katie Uhlaender. Links from today's show: For more on Speedy check out JeretPeterson.com or follow him on Twitter at @SpeedyPeterson For more on Katie and#40;andamp; why she told Melissa to say "Go Nike"and#41; check out her Facebook page. andnbsp; Click here to download the episode Click hereandnbsp;to subscribe on iTunes Click hereandnbsp;for The GameOn Podcast Archive Click here for our Ring Tones and#40;including a brand new GameOn Intro ringtone!and#41; Follow us on twitterandnbsp;@GameOn_Podcast,andnbsp;@GoGameFace,andnbsp;@Melis Greenhawt,andnbsp;@EJBoekeandnbsp; Email us atandnbsp;GameOn@gogameface.com andnbsp; [Read More]

published February 16, 2010 at 8:01pm EST

VANCOUVER 101: BOBSLED, LUGE AND SKELETON

and#40;Ed. Note: As we prep for the Olympic Games in Vancouver,andnbsp; look for Pretty Tough Primers on all the winter events and competitionsand#41;. Imagine laying on a sled the size of a bath mat wearing head to toe spandex. You grip the metal handles on either side and succumb to the forces of physics as you fly down a long, curvy track of ice at speeds of more than 60 mph.andnbsp; If youandrsquo;re on your back, feet first, thatandrsquo;s the luge. Head first, face down, hands behind your back, youandrsquo;re sliding skeleton style. There are a number of sports that spectators only get to enjoy every four years on the Olympics stage.andnbsp; Luge, skeleton and bobsled are among them. The three are exciting and fast races where basically a sled speeds down an icy tube to the finish. In order to attract athletes for these sports some coaches travel to seek out younger kids that may have an interest or knack for it. This happened in Colorado where the USA luge team put on a exhibition and got [Read More]

published February 9, 2010 at 3:04pm EST

VANCOUVER OLYMPICS ALL ABOUT THE PEOPLE

As an athlete watching the Olympics, it makes you really think about each Olympiansandrsquo; individual stories. Each one of them has lived a life dedicated to their sport. Theyandrsquo;ve each made personal sacrifices. Theyandrsquo;ve woken up early and stayed up late practicing and preparing. They follow strict training schedules. And they try and live up to the expectations of their family, friends, fans and now entire nations. The 2010 Vancouver Olympic Opening Ceremony made viewers aware of some of these special stories. The biggest story of the day was also the most painful. It was that of 21-year old luger, Nodar Kumaritashvili from the nation of Georgia whose life was claimed by a crash earlier in the day. Hours before the opening ceremony Kumaritashvili went to practice on the track that he had described days before to his father as scary. According to his dad, Kumaritashvili said he was scared of one of the turns. Sadly it was on that turn that he lost control and slammed into a st [Read More]

published February 14, 2010 at 6:42pm EST

Women Talk Sports | Bobsled/Luge