Athletic Profile: Cyclist Lance Armstrong

Lance Armstrong has been competing since his childhood in Plano, TX. His career intentions started to show themselves when at age 13, Armstrong won the Iron Kids Triatholon and when on to turn pro at the age of 16. During his senior year of high school, Armstrong began training in cycling with the US Olympic development team in Colorado Springs, CO. This was the start of his cycling career and in 1989, he qualified for the junior world championships in Moscow and two years later became the US National Amateur Champion before turning professional.

As a pro, he proved himself time and again by winning championship titles and a victory at the Tour de France. He also won a spot on the US Olympic team. By 1996, Armstrong was ranked as the number one cyclist in the world and completed in the Summer Olympics, held in Atlanta. Soon after, he signed on as a member of the French-based Cofidis racing team.

Just as life for Armstrong seemingly could not get much better professionally, health-wise, Armstrong received news that would not only alter his career but his entire life. He began experiencing pain so excruciating that it prevented him from being on his bike. He soon discovered that he had advanced testicular cancer that has already spread to his brain and his lungs. At that time, Armstrong was given less than a 50/50 chance of recovery. While he was scared, Armstrong remained determined and began aggressive chemotherapy. Following the advise of specialists, he began a treatment where he might make a full recovery and less risk of losing his lung capacity. The treatment began to work and as Armstrong began fighting with everything he had, he mentally began to think about racing again.

The fight against his cancer was physically and emotionally draining but the athlete felt the experience was the best thing to happen to him. His changed perspective allowed him to think about more than cycling and his attention was turned to helping the cancer community that had helped him. He founded the Lance Armstrong Foundation shortly after his diagnosis to help other who were also fighting cancer. While his goodwill efforts carried along, Armstrong eventually was given a clean bill of health. His return to racing however wasn’t the smoothest of transitions. He has left his racing team and was unsure of where his career stood. The United States Postal Service ended up signing Armstrong and he in turn, set out with gusto to reprove himself as a leader in the sport of cycling. His professional comeback in 1998 didn’t exactly start out as planned. Early in 1998, during the Paris-Nice race, Armstrong pulled off to the side of the road and quit the race.

Many thought this was the end but Armstrong later admitted he wasn’t ready for a return. Taking some time off, he learned how to live post-cancer and build up the courage to race again. In 1999, after winning a handful of other races, Armstrong wanted one thing – a win at the Tour de France. While many would have considered his ability to race after the battle with cancer was a victory of its own, Armstrong wanted a win – and win he did. In the years to follow, he won 6 more times and awarded nearly every sports honor that exists, including Male Athlete of the Year by several top sporting organizations and media outlets.

Armstrong currently is in retirement. Through his LIVESTRONG foundation with partner Nike, Armstrong continues to support the cancer community as well as encourage and empower others to take control of their lives and their health. The foundation’s website LIVESTRONG.com offers many resources for the public to help promote health, fitness, and healthy lifestyles.

NASCAR Legend- Dale Earnhardt Senior

On April 29, 1951 a child was born to Martha Coleman and Ralph Earnhardt who would eventually take the world of stock car racing by storm.  On that day Ralph Dale Earnhardt began his life in Kannapolis, North Carolina.  He would go on to become one of NASCAR’s most infamous drivers in history.

Here we will look at the life and career of “The Man In Black”.

The Making Of A Legend
Despite his father’s efforts to discourage young Dale from following in his footsteps, Earnhardt developed a love for the sport of car racing at an early age.  Ralph Earnhardt at the time was one of best short track drivers in the area and watching his father race and win only fueled Dale’s desire to start his own racing career.  Eventually Dale quick school to begin working full time while driving at night.  After his father succumbed to a heart attack in 1973, Dale became even more determined to blaze a trail in the stock car racing world.  He launched his NASCAR career after debuting in the then Winston Cup Series in 1975.  Four years later, he scored his first full time ride which signaled the beginning of a long and enormously successful career.

After years of financial hardship, the days of working by day, scraping together enough money to race soon became history as Dale Earnhardt Senior quickly proved himself by winning the rookie crown and his first series championship in consecutive seasons.  Beating veteran drivers, Earnhardt changed teams several times before returning to Richard Childress in 1984.  Two years later the team captured their first championship and a solidified a partnership which would lead them to six championships in nine seasons.  

Family Life
People have said that Dale Earnhardt Senior was without a doubt tough, determined and unwavering in his pursuit of his goals.  Married three times and the father of four children, he experienced his share of victories as well as failures as a husband and father.

The Death of a Legend
After years of carving out his place in stock car racing, Dale Earnhardt Senior was infamous for driving the way he lived.  He worked, played and drove hard, pushing himself to his limits and allowing no room for weakness in those around him.  His name invoked strong emotions in NASCAR fans, where people either loved or hated him as a driver.  Nevertheless, his death in 2001 left a void in the NASCAR community as well as the nation.  During the final lap of the Daytona 500, NASCAR’s season opening race, Dale Earnhardt Senior was racing in the third position when a crash into the wall took his life.  Eight years later, NASCAR is still wildly popular among fans, many of whom will never forget Dale Earnhardt Senior.

Muhammad Ali and Laila Ali – Together

Muhammad Ali was born on January 17, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky.  His birth name was Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr, but he changed it to Muhammad Ali in 1964 after he joined the Nation of Islam.

As an amateur boxer, Ali won a gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome.  When he turned professional, he was the first person to win the world lineal heavyweight championship three times.  Ali has 56 wins and 5 loses to his career records.

In 1967, Ali was arrested for draft evasion charges after refusing to be drafted into the U.S. military based on religious beliefs and general opposition to the Vietnam War.  The arrest caused him to lose his boxing license, as well as the boxing title for four years while the case was fought in the U.S. Supreme Court.

Muhammad Ali was known for his unique fighting style, which he himself described as “float like a butterfly and sting like a bee”.  Some of his most notable boxing matches included the three matches with Joe Frazier and one with George Foreman.   In 1970, while his case was still on appeal in the Supreme Court, Ali was allowed to resume boxing in Georgia against Jerry Quarry, whom he defeated after three rounds.  Shortly after the match, the New York State Supreme Court ruled that Muhammad Ali had been unjustly denied his boxing license and Ali went on to fight Oscar Bonavena in 15 long rounds before finally defeating him and qualifying for the match against the undefeated Joe Frazier.  On March 8, 1971, Frazier and Ali met for the “Fight of the Century”, which ended in Ali’s first professional loss.

During a match with Foreman, Ali invented a tactic that involved leaning on the ring ropes and covering up against ineffective body shots thrown by Foreman.  This move was later termed “The Rope-A-Dope”.  Ali regained his world title in this match.

Muhammad Ali has been married four times and has seven daughters and two sons.  It was during his third marriage with a woman by the name of Veronica Porche that Ali’s daughter Laila was born in December of 1977.

Laila Ali

In Laila’s first professional boxing match in December of 1999, Ali knocked out April Fowler in the first round.  She went on to win 8 consecutive matches and soon the boxing fans wanted to see Laila Ali face off against George Foreman’s daughter or Joe Frazier’s daughter.  It was June 2001 when Ali had the first match with Jackie Frazier-Lyde (Joe Frazier’s daughter).  The fight was given the name Ali/Frazier IV, after the women’s fathers’ fight trilogy.  After 8 rounds, the judges ruled Laila Ali the winner.

In 2002, Laila Ali co-authored a book with David Ritz, titled Reach! Finding Strength, Spirit, and Personal Power.  It was meant to motivate and inspire young people.

Laila has been married twice. She gave birth to her son, Curtis Muhammad Conway Jr on August 26, 2008.

Ana Ivanovic: Star of Tennis

Born in Basel, Switzerland in 1987, Ana Ivanovic is a 6′1 star of tennis. When she was just 5 years old, Ana fell in love with tennis after watching Monica Seles on television. She pleaded with her parents to allow her to take tennis lessons, to which they agreed and bought her a tennis racquet for her birthday. Her training years were less than ideal due to NATO bombings in 1999. She starting having practices in the morning to help avoid the chaos and even started training in an abandoned swimming pool during the winter months due to a lack of facilities. Ana  turned pro in August of 2003, debuting on the ITF Circuit. In 2004, she finished in the Top 100, making the largest ranking jump of any player that year. She also reached the final of the Junior Wimbledon tournament in that same year. Her first break through performance occurred when she took Venus Williams to two tie breaks, until eventually losing in the Zurich Open in Switzerland.

Brief Tournament History
Ana won her first career singles title in 2005, playing in Canberra Australia. She continue her wins after defeating Svetlana Kuznetsova, Vera Zvonareva, and Nadia Petrova who were all considered top 10 players. She reached the quarter finals of the French open in that same year, losing to Petrova.  Moving on, Ivanovic reached the semifinals of the 2005 Zurich Open and Generali Ladies Linz, both tournaments she lost to Patty Schnyder. In 2006, Ivanovic played tournaments in Australia, Warsaw, and Berlin. She also progressed to the third round of the French Open and the fourth at 2006 Wimbledon. After suffering several defeats in 2006, Ivanovic made a breakthrough win when she defeated Martina Hingis, a former World Number 1, in the final of the Montreal Rogers Cup. She went on to win the United States Open series ahead of Maria Sharapova and Kim Clijisters. She lost the US Open to Serena Williams.

Shortly after playing the US Open, she had to recuperate from a recurring injury affecting her right shoulder. Her return happened in Linz and she made it to the quarterfinals before she lost to Sharapova.
Ana also played nine additional tournaments in doubles, teaming up with Maria Kirileno and Sania Mirza. Ana ended 2006 placing at World Number14 in rankings herself and at World Number 51 in doubles. Ivanovic started 2007 with three tournaments in Australia, being defeated in all three. Shortly after the losses, Ana fired her coach David Taylor. As the year progress, she went into the French Open with a 6 match winning streak, ultimately being defeated. She was later forced to withdraw from the Serbian Fed Cup and the US Open due to a knee injury she sustained at Wimbledon. Upon her return she played and won the East West Bank Classic in California and increased her ranking to a career high World Number 4. It was in 2008 that Ana finally defeated Venus Williams for the first time in her career. Ultimately, she was defeated by Sharapova but her ranking rose to World Number 2 during the tournament performance.

In recent months, Ana has been once again plagued by an injury, this time a tear in her thigh, which isn’t thought to keep her out of the next series of tournaments. As a player, Ana likes to play on all surfaces and her best shot is considered to be her forehand. Personally, she admires Federer for his professionalism both in and out of the game. She is also superstitious in that she will not walk on the lines of the court and she will dine at the same restaurants during her tournament stays. Ana is fluent in Serbian, English, and some Spanish.

Ivanovic’s Additional Awards

• Junior Wimbledon runner-up 2004
• Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Most Improved Player 2005
• US Open Series champion 2006
• Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Most Improved Player 2007
• Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Karen Krantzcke Sportmanship Award 2007
• UNICEF National Ambassador for Serbia
• Nominated for U.S. Secretary of State’s 2007 International Women of Courage Award
• AIPS Women’s Tennis Player of the Year 2008
• German Tennis Magazine Michael Westphal Award 2008
• Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Diamond ACES Award 2008
• Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Humanitarian Award 2009

Legend of the Game: Profile of The Williams Sisters

Having one professional athlete in a family is rare – having two professional American athlete siblings is almost unthinkable!  Serena and Venus Williams (The Williams Sisters) beat those odds, however, and have both previously held the number 1 ranking for tennis players.  Currently, they are ranked two and three in the world.

Serena and Venus have played each other many times in Grand Slam singles tournaments, as well as other professional tournaments.  They are the only women during the open era to have played one another in four consecutive Grand Slam singles finals.  Their head to heard series is currently tied 10 to 10.

Serena Williams

Serena was born in 1981.  She is known for breaking records in the game of professional tennis!  She held the World No. 1 ranking by the Women’s Tennis Association on four different occasions.  She won 2 Olympic gold medals in women’s doubles.  Throughout the course of her career, she has won more prize money than any other female athlete (ever!), with more than $24 million awarded.

Serena has won 20 Grand Slam titles, including 10 titles in singles, 2 in mixed doubles, and 8 in doubles.  She is the reigning Australian Open singles champion as well as the US Open champion.  In fact, Serena is the most recent athlete, male or female, to hold all four Grand Slam singles titles at the same time.  She is the only female to have won all four Grand Slam tournaments.

Venus Williams

Venus was born in 1980, and previously held the World No. 1 American tennis player ranking by the Women’s Tennis Association.  Venus turned professional in 1994, and since then has won 56 titles including 17 Grand Slam titles – 7 in singles, 2 in mixed doubles, and 8 in women’s doubles.  Other than Reginald Doherty, Venus has won three Olympic gold medals, including one in singles and two in women’s doubles – more Olympic gold medals than any other tennis player.  Venus is second only to her sister in prize money earnings, winning over $22 million.

Off the courts, Venus is the Chief Executive Office of an interior design firm called V Starr Interiors.  The company has designed the Olympic athletes apartments as part of the US package for hosting the 2012 Olympic Games in New York City, designed the set for the PBS show, Tavis Smiley Show, as well as residences and businesses in and around Palm Beach, Florida.  She has also teamed with the athletic clothing retailer, Steve & Barry’s, to launch her own fashion lined called EleVen in 2007.

Legends of Sports – Jim Thorpe

Jacobus Franciscus Thorpe, more often known as Jim, was an American athlete. Born in May 1888, Thorpe was considered to be one of the most versatile athletes of modern sports. In 1912, Thorpe won Olympic gold medals in the pentathlon and decathlon. He also was a football player, playing successfully at both collegiate and professional levels. Additionally, Thorpe played professionally in both basketball and baseball. Thorpe was a Native American Indian and of European decent. He was raised in the native American tribe Sac and Fox nations in Oklahoma. His Indian name was Wa-Tho-Huk, translated loosely to mean “bright path”.

The Early Years

He attended school with his twin brother, Charlie, who died at nine years old due to complications of pneumonia. Thorpe’s brother was very helpful to him during school and after his death, Thorpe ran away from school and had difficulties dealing with Charlie’s death. His mother also passed away two years later due to childbirth complications, leading Thorpe into a deep depression. In 1904, Thorpe decided to attend the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Carlisle, PA. It was there that Glenn Scobey “Pop” Warner became his coach. Warner was considered to be one of the most influential coaches in the history of early American football. Thorpe stayed on task until later in the year his father died from gangrene poisoning, leaving Thorpe to once again leave school. He did farming work for a few years but finally returned to the school in Carlisle where he resumed his athletic career with Warner.

Starting a Career

Track and field was Thorpe’s primary focus at Carlisle but were not the only events he took part in playing. He was competitive in football, lacrosse, baseball, basketball, and even ballroom dancing, having won the 1912 inter-collegiate ballroom dancing championship. Coach Warner was against Thorpe engaging in physical games such as football but was ultimately convinced by Thorpe to run a few plays. Warner, figuring Thorpe’s attention to football was just a phase, agreed but was surprised to see Thorpe run circles around the other team. He first garnered national attention in 1911 when he played for his school’s football team as a running back, placekicker, defensive back, and punter. Playing against Harvard, Thorpe score all of the points for the team, ending the season 11-1. The next year his team took the national championship.

The 1912 Olympics added two new events – the pentathlon and the decathlon. Due to Thorpe’s versatility,  Thorpe seemed perfectly cut out for both.  Competition was tough but Thorpe celebrated the closing ceremonies with two gold medals. He success at the Olympics earned him a ticker-tape parade on Broadway. Thorpe also participated in baseball during the Olympics and it was that sport that ultimately lead to the controversy that followed him later.

The Olympics, sticklers for rules about professional athletes not being allow to participate in the Olympics, were made aware of the fact that Thorpe had played professional baseball in North Caroline in 1909 and 1910. The Amateur Athletic Union took the news very seriously, leading to the Olympics stripping Thorpe of all of his Olympic titles, medals, and awards due to the fact he was considered a professional athlete. Many critics believed Thorpe was striped of his Olympic awards due to the fact that he was an American Indian.

Reestablishing Thorpe

After the Olympic controversy, Thorpe became a free agent, opting to play a reserve with the New York Giants and traveling the world. He had also not left his love of football behind. In 1920, the Canton Bulldogs were one of 14 teams to form the American Professional Football Association which later became the NFL. He was nominated APFA’s first president, though he continued to play for the Bulldogs. He continued his football career until 1931, when he finally retired at the age of 41, after playing 52 NFL games for six different teams from 1920-28.

After his retirement, Thorpe struggled for money and work. During the Great Depression, he held various jobs but nothing that provided the family financial security. In the 1950’s, he was hospitalized for lip cancer. It was then that Thorpe’s wife told the public that the family was broke due to Thorpe’s charity over the years and exploitation of his career. It was also in 1950 that Thorpe was named the greatest athlete in the first half of the twentieth century by the Associated Press. In 1953, Thorpe had a third heart attack. He was on artificial respiration for awhile but eventually lost consciousness and died on March 28. His third wife, Patricia, read that a small town in Pennsylvania was looking to attract business and she subsequently made a deal with the town . They would purchase his remains, dedicate a monument, and renamed the town Jim Thorpe. Ironically, Thorpe had never even been to the area in person.

Post-Mortem Accolades

Throughout the years, Thorpe supporters had worked tirelessly to get his medals reinstated to him. After many years, they were finally able to get the ruling overturned. In 1983, a ceremony was held to reinstate the medals Thorpe had originally won. His children accepted commemorative medals on his behalf. Incidentally, Thorpe original medals which were in a museum were at one time stolen, never to be seen again.

In addition to his 1950’s acclaim, Jim Thorpe was also inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1963; inducted into the halls of fame for college football, national track and field competitions, and the US Olympic teams; in 1986, The Jim Thorpe Association established an award in Thorpe’s name to be given each year to the best defensive back in college football; in 1999, the Associated Press place him third on their list of top athletes of the century behind greats Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan; and ESPN also ranked in as one of North America’s Athletes of the Century, placing him in at number seven. In 1999, The US House of Representatives passed Resolution 198, which honored Thorpe as “America’s Athlete of the Century.

Profile of American Athlete: Mary Lou Retton

Mary Lou Retton also known as “Americas Sweetheart” is a well know American athlete.  She has been retired from competitive women’s gymnastics since 1986 yet still holds a special place in the hearts of Americans and the history of the sport.  Here we will learn more about the child, the athlete and the woman she is today.

Background and Childhood.
Born on January 24, 1968 in Fairmont, WV Mary Lou Retton is one of five children.  Mary Lou Retton began dance classes when she was four years old and then began gymnastic classes with her older sister.  She trained in West Virginia until the age of 14 when she moved to Houston to begin studying under Bela Karolyi.  While living in Houston she lived with a fellow student’s family and continued her education while training via correspondence courses.  She almost missed the 1984 Olympics due to a knee injury which required surgery just six weeks before the Olympics.  She recovered from surgery in just three weeks and the rest as they say “is history”.
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