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Spring 2014
FEATURES
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Brittney Griner: Balance, Motivation and Being True
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Paralympics and the Growing Field of Adaptive Sports
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Gold Defense
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Fallon Fox – An Unintended Champion
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From the Boston Marathon Survivors – Keep Running
By Stephanie Laffin
By Brian Patrick
By John Groth
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By Connie Wardman
By Dear World
DEPARTMENTS LETTERS
8 In Your Face BEN COHEN, MBE, EXECUTIVE EDITOR
10 With You ERIC CARLYLE, CEO/PUBLISHER
34
12 BrandNews PATRICK DAVIS, CO-PUBLISHER
14 From Different to Special CONNIE WARDMAN, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
SPECIAL
26 High-5 For Standing Up 50 Fitness
Weight Train for Fat Loss
52 Research
High School Sports Aggression and Dating Violence Link
16 20 22 24
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IN EVERY ISSUE The Foundation: Important Work Ahead Pop Culture: Winning – Done My Way Success: Embracing Diversity Sports: The Kiss Seen Round the World 2.0
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PUBLISHERS - publisher@standup-magazine.com
EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Eric Carlyle, CEO/Publisher Patrick Davis, Co-Publisher
Ben Cohen, MBE
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF - editor@standup-magazine.com
SPECIAL GUEST CONTRIBUTORS
Connie Wardman CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
Alison Doerfler Scott “Babydaddy” Hoffman Michael Losier Brian Sims Shane Windmeyer CONTRIBUTING WRITERS - writers@standup-magazine.com
John Groth Miriam Latto Mark Moon Scott Norton Brian Patrick Cyd Zeigler ART DIRECTOR - artdirector@standup-magazine.com
Dara Fowler COVER DESIGN TEAM
Andrew Jones Cover photo by Brandon Sullivan of Sullivan Photography For Editorial and Media Inquiries editorial@standup-magazine.com Media Out Loud Advisory Board - advisoryboard@standup-magazine.com
Eric Carlyle and Patrick Davis (Co-Chairs); Mark Braun; Helen J. Carroll; Troup Coronado, ESQ; Amy Jones; Dr. William Kapfer; Molly Lenore; Michael Losier; Scott Norton, ESQ; and Kirk Walker StandUp Magazine is published by Sports Diversity Media, LLC, under license from Ben Cohen Worldwide, LLC © 2014 by Sports Diversity Media, LLC Sports Diversity Media, LLC 4703 S. Lakeshore Dr., Suite 3 Tempe, Arizona 85282 480.222.4223 www.standup-magazine.com
For Sales Inquires advertising@standup-magazine.com
Stephanie Laffin serves as secretary of the board of directors for the It Gets Better Project, the global anti-bullying project that works to share positive messages of hope with LGBT youth. She is also on the advisory board of the Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation and during the last several years has volunteered at Camp Pride, Campus Pride's summer leadership camp for LGBT college and university students. A graduate of Mount Holyoke College, Stephanie received the Genevieve Schmich Award in recognition for her contribution to the dramatic life of the college. She began her career in New York City in theatrical casting and after working on awardwinning Broadway revivals of “Grease!,” “Chicago” and “Annie,” Stephanie moved into television casting work for “Law & Order, SVU,” “Monk” and “Century City” as well as several feature films, pilots and the series “House,” for which she was nominated for both an Emmy Award and an Artios Award.
Douglas E. Adams is a law professor at the University of Missouri and a nationally recognized youth sports expert. A youth hockey coach for more than 40 years, Professor Abrams is a prolific author and lecturer on youth sports, including sportsmanship, character development and community sports programs. He is also a contributing author to the Ask Coach Wolff website that deals with timely sports parenting issues. He is interviewed frequently on radio and television and recently wrote “Achieving Equal Opportunity in Youth Sports,” a blueprint for maintaining equitable sports programs for all children. It appears as a chapter in the book, “Learning Culture Through Sports” (Rowman & Littlefield 2010). As a varsity hockey goalie at Wesleyan University, Abrams set an Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III record for most saves in a game (64) and was the first Wesleyan hockey player named to the weekly ECAC All-East team.
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INYOURFACE
By Ben Cohen, MBE
What it Means to Win
WHEN WE
TALK ABOUT WINNING AGAINST THE ODDS, it is easy to think about the risk of failure we have avoided. But that’s not really the powerful point, is it? We don’t ask often enough, I think, what it really means to win. If our definition of “winning” is based on beating the other team, then that needs some reflection. While the scoreboard may show a certain story, it doesn’t define winning. That comes achieving what we set out to. Winning is defined before the game, not at its end. For me, winning a World Cup was a goal. I set it when I was deeply broken by the death of my dad. I had to prove that unbelievable pain and evilness would not define my life. My definition of winning was based on recovering — and proving that I could be strong enough to honor the greatest influence in my life. When it came time to play in a second World Cup, I said “not this time.” Winning for me at that point in my life was about being at home with my wife for the birth of our twin girls. I wasn’t “beating” anything — I was experiencing what I defined as my priority. I am glad I won that moment with my family. As we fight the good fight to “win” against bullying, I think we have to remember that we cannot “beat bullies.” As hard as it is, we have to understand them as people who are suffering, and likely broken on some level, too. We have to win for respect, for patience, for fairness, for equality. We have to win by being bigger. In the world of sports – no matter the level — being bigger means a deep commitment to sportsmanship. It is how we prove what we are really made of. Being true to that is the basis for any other definition of winning — at least that is my view. It is not as prevalent in sports today as it could be, and I, for one, advocate for a redefinition of how we count our wins.
Cheers,
Ben Cohen, MBE Founder and Chairman, the Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation
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We have to win for respect, for patience, for fairness, for equality.
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WITHYOU
By Eric Carlyle
A Lady With Heart
WE
ARE ALL FACED WITH CHALLENGES AND ADVERSITY. Sometimes it is how you face those challenges that make a difference in the outcome. In the 1990s I was fortunate enough to work for Connie Kalitta. He is one of the most celebrated National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) drag racers in history and a member of the Motorsports Hall of Fame. During the 1970s Kalitta was instrumental in launching the racing career of Shirley Muldowney who went on to become known as the “First Lady of Racing.” Married at 16 and a mother two, it was years later when Muldowney became the first woman to earn an NHRA license. Being a woman in a virtually all-male sport, Muldowney found it much more difficult to find team sponsors and crew members than her male colleagues. She was often ridiculed and heckled for her interest and ability as a top fuel racer. With Kalitta’s help, Muldowney began to overcome stereotypes and eventually became a fan favorite. Muldowney became the first driver to win three World Fuel Championships. She won in 1977, 1980 and 1982. But in 1984 her racing career was derailed after she crashed her car in Montreal. The near-fatal accident was caused by a wheel malfunction. Muldowney was down but she wasn’t out. In 1986, against all odds, Muldowney returned to NHRA racing. In 1989 she won another NHRA Nationals title, making that her 18th and final NHRA title. In 1990 Muldowney was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame. Muldowney is truly a sports pioneer. She overcame many challenges throughout her career — from being the first woman licensed by the NHRA, to becoming the first person to win three separate World Fuel Championships, to enduring four years of rehabilitation, to winning her 18th NHRA title. Part of working for Kalitta required watching the 1983 film “Heart Like a Wheel” which was based on Muldowney’s life. It shows how, no matter what challenges, problems or deficits you may face in your life, with determination and desire plus some support from those who believe in you, you can achieve your dream. With you,
Eric Carlyle CEO/Publisher On a side note, Kalitta wasn’t the only Connie who has been instrumental in my personal and professional life. I would like to thank Connie Wardman for her dedication to StandUp Magazine and to the sports diversity movement. Connie will be leaving StandUp Magazine after this issue but will remain on board as a member of our Advisory Board and as Editor Emerita.
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... with determination and desire plus some support from those who believe in you, you can achieve your dream.
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BRANDNEWS
By Patrick Davis
Building the Brand, Beating the Odds
WHETHER
BASED ON FIGURES from Forbes, The Wall Street Journal or the U.S. government, the rate of business failures is roughly the same: approximately 80 percent of new businesses fail. As the StandUp commercial brand enters its fourth year, we are especially thankful to be beating the odds and succeeding. How have we done it? Mostly, because of you. The brand has grown in a number of ways, going from our initial, small collection of T-shirts to more than 150 products shipping to more than 50 countries — it has been quite a growth path. It happened with your belief in what we are doing. You have also enthusiastically supported this magazine, our underwear line and a special edition sports skincare kit from Kiehl’s Since 1851. Because of that support, we have been able to expand further – with a forthcoming book from Random House (launching in October 2014) and several media projects. The ability to beat the odds and grow the brand matters to us because it supports our funding model for the Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation. Each sale of branded goods lets us donate to the Foundation. And, wow, has that ever mattered. Because of the strength of the brand, we have been able to make 50 grants to those doing real world work to fight bullying — approximately $360,000 so far! Now, to extend the brand further and do more good work, we will be adding new professional athletes alongside Ben Cohen, our inspiring founder and chairman. StandUp exists as a rallying cry for all — and we look forward to new partnerships that take us into new areas of sports and to create new products you will love. Let’s keep beating the odds and building the brand.
Patrick T. Davis Co-Publisher Chief Executive Officer, Ben Cohen Worldwide, LLC
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Because of the strength of the brand, we have been able to make 50 grants to those doing real world work to fight bullying
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FROMDIFFERENTTOSPECIAL
By Connie Wardman
Creating an Atmosphere of Equality
WE
GENERALLY THINK OF WINNING only in terms of beating an opponent in a sporting contest. But many athletes face incredible odds, challenges we may or may not know about. They are bullied for a variety of reasons — for physical or mental disabilities, for looking and sounding different, for their sexual orientation, religious beliefs and sadly, the list goes on. These are all things that make people feel different and powerless — isolated in some manner from their teammates or peers. For these athletes, winning takes on a larger, more deeply personal meaning. Winning for them may be winning a game or a medal but more importantly for them, it may also be the life-defining ability to simply participate in sports, to become part of the team or to finally be true to who they really are. Because whether they win the game or not, true champions give it all they’ve got, both on the field and off — it’s what makes them so special. This issue shares with you the stories of winning athletes who have faced tremendous challenges and still come out winners in the largest, truest sense of the word. Now playing in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), Brittney Griner has the opportunity to share her personal stories because they inspire young people who are being bullied. She’s letting them know through her recently-released autobiography and her newly-developed resource app that it does, indeed, get better. Thanks to new adaptive sports equipment, athletes with disabilities have opportunities to not only compete in local adaptive sports leagues but also to compete globally in high-level competitions like the Paralympics, often winning medals along the way. Fallon Fox, the first professional transgender fighter in the MMA shares her journey to overcome the racist and transphobic hate and prejudice of those who don’t know or understand what she has had to face in her gender identity struggle Survivors of the Boston Marathon bombing share their “love letters” to all of us, urging us to “keep running.” And in 2012 the first kiss between an openly gay professional athlete and his husband was broadcast by ESPN. Scott Norton shares his story with us. Hopefully these stories will elevate the ongoing discussions of sports diversity and inclusion to maintain a broad focus, one that recognizes the ability of sports to offer a positive experience for all athletes, both because of and in spite of their personal challenges, skill levels and the outcome of the game. It really is about creating an atmosphere of equality for all athletes who want to play that eliminates feelings of being different. Equality becomes the level playing field that enables them to realize how truly special they are.
Connie Wardman Editor-in-Chief
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... whether they win the game or not, true champions give it all they’ve got, both on the field and off.
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THEFOUNDATION
By Alison Doerfler
Important Work Ahead
F
OR THE PAST THREE YEARS, THE BEN COHEN STANDUP FOUNDATION has been a founding member of the LGBT Sports Coalition. What began at Nike as a meeting of the minds in June 2012 has become a full three-day summit hosted by this preeminent sports brand. As a group of organizations and individuals committed to ending anti-LGBT bias and discrimination in sports at all levels of participation, we celebrate the changes that have taken place in the sports world this past year. Last year StandUp was named as fiscal sponsor of the Coalition, a role that we are honored to fill. An important role for StandUp is to manage the giving of grants to support critical efforts for our own anti-bullying work and for that of the Coalition as well. Last year Nike generously donated $200,000 to seed the important work of the Coalition they inspired. The first grants were awarded in January 2014 to fund the following collaborative projects: CAMPUS PRIDE SPORTS INDEX Collaborative partners: Campus Pride, GO! Athlete, Dr. Sue Rankin, National Center for Lesbian Rights Sports Project, Dr. Pat Griffin and NIRSA: Leaders in Collegiate Recreation
The Campus Pride Sports Index is a vital tool for assisting college and university campuses to improve intercollegiate athletics and collegiate recreation for LGBT players, coaches, participants, staff and fans. Setting a national standard of LGBT- and ally-inclusive policies, programs and practices related to collegiate athletics and recreation, the index will also provide a measurement and
benchmarking tool for campuses, enabling the LGBT Sports Coalition to evaluate LGBT-friendly athletic environments. This project will provide critical data for the next eight years that will help the Coalition to determine key initiatives and programs to be created and tracked over that span of time. GAME PLAN FOR RESPECT: COACHES AND ATHLETIC DIRECTORS CREATING LGBT-INCLUSIVE TEAMS Collaborative Partners: GLSEN, AAHPERD (now known as SHAPE America) and Dr. Pat Griffin
Building on training materials already successfully used with high school coaches by the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network’s (GLSEN) Changing the Game Project, this program will create a collaborative model that can be replicated in other states and school districts. The grant will build in the capacity for self-sustaining education at the state and local school district levels by developing materials (face-to-face training, web-based or print) for annual coach orientation programs to be carried out by district athletic directors and their state athletic associations. Working in partnership with one state interscholastic athletic association and at least three local school districts in that state, this model is a one-day training program for 75-100 high school coaches, athletic directors and state interscholastic athletic leaders. It will provide resources to identify best practices and policies to make high school athletics a safe and respectful experience for students of all sexual orientations and gender identities/expressions. >>>
As a group of organizations and individuals committed to ending anti-LGBT bias and discrimination in sports at all levels of participation, we celebrate the changes that have taken place in the sports world this past year.
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THEFOUNDATION
continued
LOWER HUDSON STUDENT-ATHLETE LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE Collaborative Partners: You Can Play Project, Go! Athletes and Coach Anthony Nicodemo
New York State recently mandated all its school districts to comply with the Dignity for All Students Act. The Dignity Act seeks to provide the State’s public elementary and secondary school students with a safe and supportive environment free from discrimination, intimidation, taunting, harassment and bullying on school property, on a school bus and/or at a school function. This conference of student-athletes will give districts an opportunity to comply with the act by working with the LGBTQ community. By having an official stance on inclusion in New York State’s association, LGBTQ players and coaches will have a safe space in athletics. SEEKING COMMON GROUND: CREATING RESPECTFUL ATHLETIC CLIMATES FOR ATHLETES AND COACHES OF ALL RELIGIOUS PERSPECTIVES, SEXUAL ORIENTATIONS AND GENDER IDENTITIES OR EXPRESSIONS Collaborative partners: Bra{che the Silence, Dr. Pat Griffin, National Center for Lesbian Rights Sports Project and National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Office of Inclusion
Participation in collegiate sports brings together student-athletes from diverse backgrounds and identities to compete as a team. When a team performs at its best, every individual is respected and the differences they bring are valued, enabling team members to focus more on achieving individual and team competitive goals. Among the many differences student-athletes and coaches bring to their athletic experiences, the most difficult to reconcile are religious orientation, sexual orientation and gender identity or expression. The aim is to plan, implement and evaluate a one-day national meeting/think tank for 20-25 members of sport ministries, religious leaders, athletic directors, coaches and athletes at high school and college levels representing a spectrum of sexual orientations, gender identity/expressions and religious perspectives. They will discuss and identify specific policy and best practice recommendations for protecting the rights of student-athletes of all religions, sexual orientations and gender identities/expressions, enabling them to compete in a climate of respect and inclusion. The LGBT Sports Coalition, like the stories we share in this issue of StandUp Magazine, are committed to competing and winning to help advance the conversations and attitudes of players, coaches and fans at all levels of sports. Alison Doerfler is the executive director of the Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation & the executive vice president of Ben Cohen Worldwide, LLC
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POPCULTURE
By Scott “Babydaddy” Hoffman
Winning – Done My Way
WHAT IS IT TO WIN? I REMEMBER LEARNING IN SCHOOL ABOUT ALL OF THE CLEAR-CUT WAYS TO BE VICTORIOUS: be first in a competition, make it into college, find financial success. But when it came to my art and music studies, my classmates and I seemed to be graded on effort and discipline while our actual abilities, regardless of critical judgment, were praised for individuality and passion. In those environments, competitive struggle felt internalized, selfpropelled. I was hopeless at sports but excelled at artistic activities that I felt were less competitive but more suited to me. So thanks in no small part to these lessons, I came to truly believe over many years that success in a creative field was about remaining true to myself. Even in my deepest high school obsessions with my favorite bands, my idols stood apart from their peers through their unique vision. Critical review of their music was virtually unknown and irrelevant to me and I praised them for avoiding the trappings of commercial success. They didn’t need to win against their peers because they were in a lane of their own that they themselves had created. These points are all important in explaining why, professionally and artistically (two things so confusingly intertwined in the world of making pop music), I felt that I was able to win in my field against innumerable odds. When I started a band with a couple of my friends in 2001, our biggest dream was to perform in front of our friends and to possibly release our songs on a record. Our vision from early on was to create something that we felt was true to our inspirations
The moment we chose to go on stage and be who we wanted to be was our true moment of victory.
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and passions. Three of the main members of the band were gay men and Ana, our co-front person, was a self-professed “drag queen in a woman’s body.” We were open about who we were underneath our larger-than-life personas and we wrote and performed songs that told stories about things that we understood and truly cared about. So by the time we signed our major label record deal in 2003, we were already living our dream. And then, shomehow those personal victories seemed to fuel an even greater machine, one that led to album sales, awards and respectable chart positions. In the minds of those around us we had beat the system, won against humbling statistics to become what many people only dream of – a professional touring, profitable rock ’n roll band that was allowed to continue doing what we, the individual band members, loved … indefinitely. Some saw those victories as a dream-like success story. In the end, though, if I had to describe the act of winning against all odds, I would go back to a definition of winning that I had picked up much earlier in life. I would mention the decision made years before attaining those awards and chart positions, before any television appearances or festival gigs. The moment we chose to go on stage and be who we wanted to be was our true moment of victory. It was the moment that, instead of driving down the heavily trafficked road of normality, we decided to create a lane of our own where, as we traveled it, we could be ourselves. Scott “Babydaddy” Hoffman is a co-founder and member of the musical group, Scissor Sisters.
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SUCCESS
By Michael Losier
Embracing Adversity — It's an Inside Job
IS IT YOUR OWN VOICE OR SOMEONE ELSE'S VOICE in your head telling you "you can't do that," or "you are not able to do that," or "who do you think you are ... that will never happen"? These are the words that will block or stop most people from realizing their dreams and goals. These are the words of doubt. Doubt is a negative vibe — you know how you feel when you are feeling doubt — it drains the energy, hope and possibility out of you. Doubt is the opposite of hope or possibility. When you face adversity in your life, do you let words of doubt control the outcome of what you want in your life or do you embrace it by using the Law of Attraction to remove your doubt? You can embrace adversity by removing doubt, clearing the path for possibility. The Law of Attraction is at work here. It states "I attract to my life whatever I give my attention, energy and focus to, whether positive or negative." Our feelings and moods cause us to have a feeling, also called a vibe. The Law of Attraction means that energy responds to this vibe by matching it, whether the vibe is positive or negative. Since doubt is a negative vibe, it cancels hope which is a positive vibe. The less doubt, the more hope. The more hope, the more attention, energy and focus is put on the goal or dream. And when that happens, the Law of Attraction can start to attract to you things, people, resources and ideas that enable you to reach your goal or dream. Reducing Doubt Manifests Dreams and Goals Our doubt can come from stories we have heard, things we have observed in the past or what others have taught us. They wind up forming our beliefs. A belief is a thought we think over and over and over and over again. A repetitive thought eventually becomes our belief. And once it becomes our belief, it becomes part of who we are.
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A belief that you need to be a certain age, weight or height, in a certain career or having a specific home or car — whatever your current belief is ... it can be changed if it is limiting you. A limiting belief may be limiting your success. Uncovering and identifying a limiting belief is the first step in changing that belief – ultimately, in changing your life. Most often, as people tell their stories, their limiting beliefs surface — without them realizing it. Some of these beliefs may be about their diversity and abilities from what others have taught them. For example, a swimmer with limited eyesight may have a dream of winning medals. But when he tells the story about his dream, he says "I can't do that because I have limited eyesight, but it is my goal." The limited belief here is that "swimmers with limited eyesight cannot compete." The key to uncovering a limited belief is usually hidden after the word BECAUSE. It is the limited belief that causes doubt. The best way to remove doubt is to find proof. Once we see or find proof that someone else has done what we want to do, it expands our belief that our goal or dream is possible ... and when we believe it more, the doubt lessens. When the doubt lessens, the goal or dream will manifest faster. In the swimmer’s example, finding evidence or proof that people with limited eyesight have won metals will help reduce his doubt that it is possible for him to achieve his dream goal. Overcome your adversity by becoming a proof-seeker; that means seeking proof or evidence that what you want to accomplish is possible. Michael Losier is an international speaker and best-selling author on the Law of Attraction.
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SPORTS
By Scott Norton • PHOTOS COURTESY OF RJ ROSS FOR IABOWLING.TV.COM
The Kiss Seen Round the World 2.0
Note: IN 2012 SCOTT NORTON, the first out professional bowler won the Professional Bowlers Association’s (PBA) Chameleon Championship. His celebratory kiss with his husband Craig Woodward was shown on ESPN, making it the first gay kiss between an out professional athlete and his husband to be shown on national television. “The Kiss Seen Round the World” is the name given to the recent infamous kiss between Michael Sam and his boyfriend, Vito Cammisano. It was met with the predictable mix of praise and scorn. Being that this wasn’t just any kiss but a kiss between two men, ESPN made sure they would capture the moment in all its glory. It was truly a touching moment, one of raw emotion, of dreams coming true, of sharing that moment with those you love. It brought me back to that same moment (also termed “The Kiss Seen Round the World") between myself and my husband Craig Woodward in 2012. The raw emotion, sharing that moment of triumph with the one I love, and the aftermath: the praise, the scorn, the vitriol. To experience all of these emotions out of something so innocent as a kiss was truly what blew my mind. Watching the aftermath of Michael Sam’s kiss brought all of those thoughts back. After the kiss between my husband and me was aired on ESPN, I was swept up in a firestorm of media of my own. Count-
A kiss is just a kiss. Love is love. The more we see the raw emotion, the more we, as a society understand that perhaps we aren’t so different after all, the better we all will be. 24 I StandUp I SPRING 2014
less radio shows, the Huffington Post, and most major media outlets picked up the story and most asked me the same question, “Don’t you think we should be in a place in our society where this is no longer an issue?” It was always met with the same response, “It would be wonderful if we were to that point where I’m not a ‘gay athlete’ but just an athlete.” Tell that to the teenager in Middle America who doesn’t even understand what being gay is and, as a result, contemplates suicide because our society tells him his feelings are “evil.” The fact that we are out athletes has nothing to do with garnering attention for our own personal gain but instead is to make sure that any LGBTQQI person, whether an athlete or not, understands that he or she is able to live a full, happy and successful life without having to apologize for anything. Were I to be honest, it’s more difficult now than it ever was being an out athlete. You never know when you travel to certain areas if people know about you, how they feel, what they are willing to do in the name of religion or family or whatever color they wish to paint their misdeeds. I can’t even imagine what Michael Sam will feel; I can only hope that his team will have his back. That is the great thing about football – the team can be a family that will always be there for you. Unfortunately, bowling being more an individual sport, we are all out here by ourselves. In those ways I do envy him because he will get to experience a level of openness and camaraderie I will truly never know. The fact is that we, as a society need more Michael Sams. A kiss is just a kiss. Love is love. The more we see the raw emotion, the more we, as a society understand that perhaps we aren’t so different after all, the better we all will be. I am so honored and humbled to have been the first in what I hope is a long list of same-sex kisses on TV, and I will continue to do my part to make others aware of our community’s struggle. I remember receiving my fair share of hateful messages but I will never forget the ones I got from young teens living in
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Middle America who thanked me for showing them that it did, in fact get better. I can only imagine Michael Sam has already received countless, even thousands of such comments. I can hope that in some small way perhaps ESPN used the positive response of the coverage of mine and my husband’s kiss to capture another historic moment. My greater hope, however, is that the moment we all saw that kiss in response to Michael Sam’s draft announcement will inspire others, both current athletes and aspiring athletes, to live their truth and come out from the shadow. That is when our society will truly be at the point where we can call Michael
Scott Norton and husband Craig Woodward share a celebratory hug and kiss on ESPN's coverage of the PBA's 2012 Chameleon Championship Sam an “athlete” instead of a “gay athlete” and my marriage a “marriage” instead of a “same-sex marriage.” I know I look forward to that wonderful day. Scott Norton is not only the first openly gay professional bowler in the PBA but was also been nominated for the Best Bowler ESPY in 2013, the first openly gay male athlete ever nominated for an ESPY award.
SPRING 2014 I StandUp I 25
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150,000 The number of kids that have been positively impacted by Up2Us' Coach Across America program, bringing sportsbased youth development to some of the most underserved communities in the U.S.
ADAPTIVE ACTION SPORTS Founded by Paralympic medalist and “Dancing with the Stars� contestant Amy Purdy, Adaptive Action Sports (AAS) helps create opportunities for individuals with physical disabilities to get involved in skateboarding, snowboarding and all action sports. AAS was the first organization of its kind to focus on bringing these types of sports to the disabled community.
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“If You Can Play…” “If you can play football, they want to see you play. The teams want you. The fans want you. And that’s ultimately what it’s all about. I have great respect for Michael [Sam], his courage, his decision to become public, and I’m optimistic that he’s going to get that opportunity, and hopefully he can play at this level.” — NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell
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Athletes Jason Collins, Richard Sherman, Serena Williams, Lydia Ko and Cristiano Ronaldo are the five athletes on this year’s Time 100 list. They all exemplify excellence, perseverance and a pioneering spirit. Their positive influence goes far beyond the playing field.
EXTRA YARD FOR TEACHERS Supported through the College Football Playoff Foundation, this newly-created philanthropic initiative will honor and support teachers nationally in the communities that host the College Football Playoff National Championship, providing an incredible opportunity to meet a need in K-12 education, thanks to the strength and resources of college football.
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BRITTNEY GRINER:
Balance, Motivation and Being True Brittney Griner was the number one draft choice in the 2013 WNBA draft. She is a graduate of Baylor University and plays for the Phoenix Mercury. Her book, "In My Skin" is now a New York Times Best Seller. BY STEPHANIE LAFFIN
LAST SPRING EVERYONE WAS TALKING about the upcoming 2013 WNBA draft. I kept hearing the same name over and over, Brittney Griner. Brittney Griner. This woman was all over the press — headlines, Sports Center, social media. I was working in the It Gets Better Project office, and I remember saying to our Media Manager Brett Peters, “It would be so great to do something with Brittney Griner. I think she’s so special.” Several days later, on April 3, 2013, our then-assistant Mark forwarded the following email to Brett and me: Hello, I represent basketball star Brittney Griner and she is very interested in advocating against bullying and formally aligning with the It Gets Better Project. If you're not familiar, please read a few of the articles below. Brittney is a transcendent sports figure who has endured awful behavior from fans in arenas and in social media/online due to her height and the way her appearance and play challenges traditional gender norms. She is a terrific person and is excited to make a difference in the lives of others as she embarks on her professional career. I look forward to hearing from you. Thanks so much, Lindsay Kagawa Colas, Wasserman Media Group
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Phoenix Mercury players from L to R: Diana Taurasi, Brittney Griner, and Penny Taylor PHOTO BY BARRY GOSSAGE
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I read it again. Was this really happening? I read it again. Then I screamed … “NOBODY MOVE!” I couldn’t believe it.
communicate. So what’s the best thing that could come out of the app? Is it elevating resources, introducing young people to each other or creating a community?
An hour later I spoke to Lindsay Colas, Brittney’s agent and
I would definitely say creating a good community, making it
we tossed around ideas. Lindsay said we should all connect in Los
accessible — you just download it to your phone. So much of my
Angeles but in the meantime, Brittney would be attending the
generation and younger, we always have our phones in our hands.
Women’s NCAA Final Four in New Orleans. She asked if we had
It also creates that buffer zone where, I know when I was younger
some T-shirts or branded items that Brittney could wear while she
I didn’t really want to speak to somebody face-to-face — it gives
was there. We scrambled. Brett, Mark and I put together a package
that buffer zone to be able to just reach out and talk, it doesn’t
of T-shirts, sweatshirts and hats and sent it off to New Orleans.
have to be about connecting eye-to-eye to a person.
A few days later, a photo of Brittney in an It Gets Better Project T-shirt was everywhere. That seemed to go well.
So the confidence of anonymity?
Definitely.
A week and a half later I met Brittney, Lindsay and Brittney’s girlfriend, Cherelle at the Nike offices in Culver City, California.
How do you keep focused on your commitment to
I remember thinking how great it was that Brittney was signed
anti-bullying and your app to help people? What drives that?
to Nike, a global brand putting its power and voice behind
Experiencing everything I went through drives me. It’s
this athlete, embracing her spirit and identity on the cusp of
definitely a balance. You can’t put all your time and focus into one
her starting what is sure to be a long and successful career in
thing and then slack in basketball. It’s a balance; I go back and
professional sports.
forth. I was very lucky to have a little bit of free time when I came
We talked for an hour, chatting about ideas that could
back from China. I used that free time to see family for a little bit,
showcase Brittney’s commitment to anti-bullying, uplifting the
then I split it up. I was able to work on the app, do my book tour,
voice of LGBT young people. We talked about an app for mobile
and actually try to connect back. On my book tour, in Portland I
devices that could help young people find resources, where they
went to the Q Center and read a little bit of my book and talked.
could reach out for help in their communities and engage with
It’s finding that balance where I’m like, oh, I have this free week-
other youth to talk to about what they might be going through in
end — I’m going to give it to my family. OK, the next free weekend
their lives. I saw how excited Brittney was about this idea.
I’m going to try to find something I can do — speak at a school or
A year later I caught up with Brittney about her book, her new BG:BU anti-bullying app, a year in the WNBA, what inspires her
sitting down to write back to everybody that writes to my inbox or my Instagram asking for advice. Little things go a long way.
and what it’s like to be a trailblazer. I think that’s really important. I don’t think we often I know it’s been a year since I saw you but it’s also a year after being drafted, playing in the WNBA, China, writing a
recognize how important the little things and those magic moments are.
book, going on your book tour, being in a relationship. You’ve
So how are you leaving the personal bullying behind?
had a full year! And launching this year’s Be True initiative
With your book, and the stories that you’ve worked to tell,
at Nike, that’s big!!! So what’s it like?
you’re working to say OK, “That’s who I’ve been, so I’m now
It’s amazing, actually. I did so much in just a little amount of time. It was kind of a blur but I definitely enjoyed it along the way.
moving forward.” You seem very focused on forward motion which is great.
Yes, definitely, throughout my whole work I’ve talked about When we met we were spit-balling ideas and we talked
moving on. Getting over obstacles, getting over certain situations
about the development of an anti-bullying app. Here you are,
— definitely, the book is about me and I show that I went through
you’re doing it, it’s happening. In looking at making this app
all of these challenges growing up. And even now, dealing with
happen, one of the things you and I talked about was making
people always saying rude or mean things, you can conquer it and
it accessible for young people and how young people
get over it.
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... the book is about me and I show that I went through all of these challenges growing up. And even now, dealing with people always saying rude or mean things, you can conquer it and get over it.
I have a question for you. You wear the number 42. Somebody else famous wore the number 42.
Jackie Robinson, baseball. So how did you pick the number and how did that process go?
Honestly, it was the first number given to me, and Brittney Griner in New Orleans for NCAA Final Four wearing her It Gets Better Project T-shirt PHOTO BY LINDSAY KAGAWA COLAS
then I wanted to change it. But then I read up on Jackie Robinson, his story, everything he went through. He was bullied as well, just in a different way. I chose to keep the number and it was kind of crazy; I was like “Yeah, this is my lucky number, I’m going to keep this.” That’s great! You share a lot of your personal story in the book as well as on your social media platforms. One of the greatest things is that you know how to connect with your generation and people who are really looking up to you. What encourages you to keep telling the story? What is the one thing that you want young people who read your story to take away from it?
Well I tell a lot of personal stories just because when you tell a personal story you can actually relate to a person, they don’t seem farfetched where I can’t relate to that superstar. I don’t want to be that person where no one can relate to me, so I definitely tell a lot of my story now. Some of my stories that I talk about were kind of bad but they all had a good outcome. I got over it, so I want to show that. I just want people to take from my book that no matter what you go through, there’s always a brighter side. There’s always something good at the end of it; you just have to be strong and fight through, not try to do it on your own. Don’t go through it on your own. I talk about that, as well. I did it — I wish I would have actually spoken. Yes, you’ve talked about how you’re influenced by lot of people who kept you going, that you’ve been inspired by Diana Taurasi, LeBron James and Tony Hawk. You also talk about how working with a team, not going through things alone, and having people to look up to and
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having people around you have really influenced a positive
have the backing of some very influential women, in that
way of doing things now, post-college.
decision making?”
Definitely, having a good support cast around you helps you
Oh wow, she needs to get an A in all of her classes! It means
out a lot. My teammates know everything that I went through.
everything in the world to me to be in a league where I can self-
They were definitely there for me. There’s always somebody in my
identify however I want. And I have the backing from my league
life that I can go and talk to and spill my heart out to. That really
and from my teammates, and even opponents in the league back
helped me out a lot.
me. Being able to know that you have no judgment and they’re actually going to get behind you and stand with you, it just
It seems like you’ve got great friends, and a great girlfriend and a great family.
Definitely, my girlfriend, yes. In the last year and a half she has been my rock. To go to, to talk to, to cry to, to get advice from.
motivates you to want to be better, just want to do even bigger things. Like OK, what else can I tackle even though I know I might try to come up with something that’s farfetched or hard, I know I have that backing and support.
It seems like all of the people you have surrounding you
She actually had a second part to her question. “How do
in your life, from your girlfriend, to your family, to your team
you feel knowing that you paved the way, and that you’re
and even to the WNBA, they’re really embracing of your
becoming an influential woman — for yourself and for
individual expression — you really live the message of “be
women all over the world, those who not just have to do with
true” and “be yourself.” What is it that you’ve found that
performing the same jobs as men and not getting paid the
keeps you grounded in that self love, self care and expressing
same, but to have to stand up to that? Also standing up for
your authentic self?
whomever you choose to be?”
I’ve always been a grounded person. After my book and after
Basically, you are paving the way, you’re performing a job
everything that I did, people came up to me with “You’re such an
on the worldwide stage but you have become an influential
inspiration” or “You helped me through a struggle that I went
woman and a beacon for a lot of people who say, “Wow, I can
through that I didn’t think I would overcome.” When I get feed-
be myself because I see someone who’s so great doing that.”
back like that, when fans talk to me and tell me those types of
When I first started out to speak out, to rise up or I was the
things, it definitely motivates me and pushes me to do better. And
first one to be vocal, I didn’t think I was going to be the trailblazer.
I think that’s what keeps me on the ground.
It just happened. I was like, OK, this is something that’s really close to my heart that I care about and I want to speak on it, I want to
So I have a friend in college who is a student-athlete, and
bring it to light, I want to be involved. After a while, people real-
I said, “I know you’re a Brittney Griner fan. If you could ask
ized, “Wow, you’re a trailblazer for this.” So then I was like, “I guess
Brittney anything, what would you ask?” She said, “I would
you’re right, I’ve got that title now.”
ask how she feels in a league where having the freedom to
It feels great. I have girls that will write me on my Instagram,
self-identify and where you’re able, whatever you choose, to
telling me how much they look up to me, everything I do, they
have the league support you being who you are, how that
want to be just like me. That’s the kind of pressure, a little bit, to
influences your decision making so far and to know that you
make sure that you’re on your feet doing things well, and to know
That was probably one of the best trips I’ve had in my life. Just being at the GLAAD awards and being surrounded by my peers, the LGBT community. It really felt like they were special, no judgment whatsoever in that room, and it was amazing.
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that you have that much influence on somebody’s life. I always
Going through it, starting it, I was expecting only a few people
say that it’s bigger than any championship ring you could get.
would get my message. But with my story, my book, I’ve had parents, moms, dads, little boys, little girls tell me just how much
We’ve all been on this ride with you the last year, from reading your book, The New York Times piece, the It Gets
my story means; it really hit me even more. I really am making a difference.
Better video, telling your story in the ESPN Magazine piece by ESPN’s Kate Fagan, it all seemed to happen effortlessly.
For more on Brittney Griner’s BG: BU anti-bullying app, go to:
Did you have a plan to tell the story? You seem so self-as-
www.indiegogo.com/projects/bg-bu-brittney-griner-anti-bully-
sured. Was there a plan in place from the get go of “This is
ing-app-project
how I’m going to do this”?
No honestly, there wasn’t too much of a plan, I mean the book
Stephanie Laffin serves as the secretary of the board of directors
was planned, obviously. Every time I do a piece, I just speak from
for the It Gets Better Project and also is on the advisory board of
the heart, let it flow out. I’m not big on planning a lot of stuff out
the Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation.
all the way. I just go with it. I’m here just like anybody else. I’m just telling my story piece-by-piece, interview-by-interview. It’s actually going really well. I love it.
Brittney Griner and Stephanie Laffin at NIKE offices in Culver City, California PHOTO COURTESY OF STEPHANIE LAFFIN
In the last year, since you started playing professionally, you’ve met a lot of people and you’ve been able to travel and have incredible experiences. What’s been the most magic moment of it all?
Oh man! I would say the GLAAD awards. I got to go to the GLAAD awards; I won an award, as well. I actually got to speak on stage a little bit about my story before my book came out. That was probably one of the best trips I’ve had in my life. Just being at the GLAAD awards and being surrounded by my peers, the LGBT community. It really felt like they were special, no judgment whatsoever in that room, and it was amazing. That’s great. It seems like you’re enjoying being embraced by a community that wasn’t in place for you before. Wade Davis, the executive director of the You Can Play Project, says that your story is possibly the most important story for those concerned with diversity and inclusion within the world of sports because of the many intersections of your identity. While in college you faced racism, sexism, homophobia and, because people read your gender presentation as gender non-conforming, transphobic slurs were hurled at you as well. Yet here you are, ahead of everything. Young people really see you as an incredible force and it sounds like you really appreciate it.
I do, I definitely appreciate it. The more people tell me, I guess I realize how big my story is and how much impact it really has.
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PARALYMPICS AND THE GROWING FIELD OF ADAPTIVE SPORTS BIRTH OF THE PARALYMPIC MOVEMENT The Paralympic movement came out of a post-World War II world with large numbers of soldiers and civilians with disabilities who weren’t being helped by the rehabilitation methods of the time. The first Stoke Mandeville Hospital Games in 1948 offered sports as a new method of rehabilitation and their Games held in Rome in 1960 became recognized as the first Paralympic Games. The Paralympic motto, “Spirit in Motion” is graphically represented by the symbol of the Paralympic Games – three “agitos,” meaning “I move” in Latin in red, blue and green, the three most used colors in national flags throughout the world. It was really the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London that launched a growing interest in adaptive sports by a global audience of fans watching South African sprint runner Oscar Pistorius. Already an award-winning Paralympian, he was better known to the world as the “Blade Runner” because of his “blade” prostheses. But he made history in London by being the first double-leg amputee to participate in both disabled events and in the Olympics as part of the South African 4x400-meter relay team. Opportunities for athletes with disabilities to participate at high levels of competition continue to grow thanks to inventive, ever-improving adaptive sports equipment. Originally available only to elite athletes like Pistorius, new equipment of all kinds are now available to more and more athletes with disabilities regardless of their skill levels. 2014 WINTER GAMES IN SOCHI From March 8-22, the Olympic venues in Sochi, Russia were taken over by the XI Winter Paralympic Games and 80 Paralympians from Team USA, plus coaches, trainers, doctors, physical therapists and massage therapists, went to Sochi ready to participate in the following five sports: Sled (Sledge) Ice Hockey, Wheelchair Curling, Alpine Skiing, Biathlon and Cross-Country Skiing. EVAN STRONG LIVES UP TO HIS NAME Snowboard cross made its debut in the Sochi Paralympics as part of Alpine Skiing and it turned out to be a clean medal sweep by Team USA: Evan Strong from Maui, Hawaii won gold, Mike Shea of Castaic won silver and the bronze was won by Keith Gable of Ogden, Utah. While other kids his age were surfing Hawaii’s waves, by age 13 Strong was surfing the “concrete waves” of his local skatepark. With his first skateboarding sponsorship already in place, just 10 days before his 18th birthday, his motorcycle was hit head-on by a drunk driver. Skateboarding, according to Strong “… filled my cup, made me whole.” But the accident required partial amputation of his left leg and he says he “didn’t know how to fit back into life.”
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By Brian Patrick
STEPHANIE JALLEN IN WOMEN'S GIANT SLALOM PHOTO COURTESY OF WHEELCHAIR SPORTS FEDERATION/MICHAEL A CLUBINE
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SNOWBOARD CROSS CLEAN MEDAL SWEEP BY TEAM USA: (L TO R) MIKE SHEA, EVAN STRONG, KEITH GABLE
While that accident changed Strong’s world forever, like so many
to show the last game live — the first live action shown from the
disabled athletes it certainly didn’t take away his gusto for life and his
Paralympics, giving adaptive sports a huge opportunity to be widely
passion for sports. After regaining his mobility, Strong wanted to try
seen, particularly in the U.S.
everything, including snowboarding. Trading the cool ocean breeze
The adaptive equipment used by ice hockey players is a sled
of Hawaii for the cold mountain air of Lake Tahoe in 2007 to learn
with skate blades and a center pivot underneath. In order to move
snowboarding, he shared that while he didn’t know it at the time, “…
across the ice a player, who is Velcroed into the sled, uses two
it was the beginning of the movement of a handful of people who
small hockey sticks. It really can be more difficult than stand-up
were trying to get the sport [snowboard cross] into the Paralympics.
hockey since a player has to simultaneously move his body,
I was in the right place at the right time.”
concentrate on stick-handling, passing and shooting using only
It was his association with Adaptive Action Sports seven years
his upper body.
ago that opened the door to the U.S. Nationals competition in all of
In the final game the ice hockey team beat Russia 1-0 and it was
their five athletic disciplines. Strong continues to do lots of sports,
forward (and retired U.S. Marine) Josh Sweeney who made the goal.
including downhill mountain biking and rock climbing but he says
While serving in Afghanistan an explosion cost him both his legs
that “skateboarding is a constant for me.”
and injured his left arm and hand. A Purple Heart recipient,
Dedicating his life to working with and mentoring other
Sweeney said he was able to show his fellow Marines that life
amputees, he brings a “Strong” message that disability is a state of
continues after a line-of-duty injury. “It’s awesome they can see me
mind,” telling others that you have to decide if you’re going to focus
doing something amazing. When I was injured they all took it really
on your ability or your disability. It was his accident and subsequent
hard, so it’s nice for them to see my life isn’t over.”
amputation that enabled him to discover how strong he really was.
Sweeney thought his hockey-playing days were over. But after almost two years of rehabilitation, he decided he wanted to get back
BACK-TO-BACK GOLD FOR U.S. ICE SLED HOCKEY TEAM
on the ice. “When I was on the ice I wasn’t thinking about all the
Perhaps the most exciting news coming out of the Sochi
appointments I was going to have to make and the doctors I was
competitions, however, was that the U.S. Ice Sled Hockey Team won
going to have to deal with,” according to Sweeney. “All I was think-
back-to-back gold medals for the first time in the history of the
ing about was the sport and how I can get better and just how much
Paralympics. In fact, NBC made a last minute programming change
fun I was having at the time.”
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GOLD DEFENSE By John Groth
For the first time, the Paralympics have back-to-back sledge hockey champions — Team USA! PHOTO © JOE KUSUMOTO PHOTOGRAPHY
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OUT OF THE HUNDREDS OF INDELIBLE MOMENTS, Josh Sweeney remembers the final seconds of Team USA’s 2014 Paralympic sledge hockey gold-medal game the most. He could just feel the celebration about to happen. In his first Paralympics, the 26-year-old forward was about to be one of the major heroes. But he was too busy checking someone to even see the clock go down to zero March 15 in Sochi, Russia. “I’m down on the other end from [goalie] Steven Cash. The buzzer hits, ‘cause I was forechecking [someone] making sure the puck stays in their zone, and the buzzer hits and I have this feeling of release that we won the game and I turn around and I look and all the guys are piled on Steven Cash. I slowly start skating that way, taking my helmet off 'cause I was just exhausted. But just seeing all them tackle Steven Cash [was my favorite moment],” says Sweeney, a Phoenix resident. “As soon as I got up in there, I thought maybe I’d be alright and I wouldn’t get attacked. But as soon as they saw me, they started grabbing me and throwing me into the dogpile.” DOGPILING ON It was a dogpile filled with so many emotions — elation, exhaustion, relief — and some major history. With the 1-0 victory, the U.S. is the first Paralympic hockey team to earn back-to-back gold medals. Four military members — forwards Paul Schaus and Sweeney (both Marine Corps veterans), defenseman Rico Roman (Army veteran) and goaltender Jen Lee (active duty Army) — helped lead the charge. Team USA finished 4-1, avenging an earlier 2-1 loss to Russia in the final round of the preliminaries before defeating the host country in the championship. The U.S. didn’t allow a goal in the medal round, blanking rival Canada, 3-0 in the semifinals. And the U.S. made it back-to-back gold-medal game shutouts, as it defeated Japan, 2-0, in the 2010 finals. It was the U.S.’ third medal in four Paralympic Games. Lee admitted there was a difference than when Team USA had faced Russia four days earlier. Team members stressed having a defensive mindset — protecting the goalie, not allowing easy shots or having unnecessary penalties, which plagued them in their first matchup. “We knew if we kept doing what we did, the way we played against Canada in the semifinal, that we would come out on top,” says Lee, who had his leg amputated above the knee after a 2009 motorcycle accident. UPLIFTING GOAL It was Sweeney, an assistant captain, who delivered the championship’s knockout blow against Russia, stealing a pass by defenseman Alexi Lysov near the Russian blue line. He noticed Lysov was set on moving the puck to the right, broke away when he saw the pass, barely caught the puck with his right stick, skated in front and then beat goalie Vladimir Kamantcev with a high shot with 9:28 left in the period. “I was driving to the net, I was really just thinking I need to get this goalie confused so what can I do? So I switched hands over. I was hoping he was going to slide to the left more than he did. But he didn’t,” says Sweeney, who lost both his legs in 2009 after stepping on an improvised explosive device in Nowzad, Afghanistan. “As soon as he started to drop, I knew my only option was to try to roof it upstairs. So that’s where I shot the puck and luckily enough it went in and didn’t go over.”
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MEANINGFUL VICTORY A-period-and-a-half later, the celebration had begun. Lee acknowledged he was amazed. It meant plenty — especially for his family, his physical therapists and his country. “When we won the gold medal after the countdown to zero, everything just happened so fast. It was quick, all a blur,” Lee says. “I was jumping up and down with joy. I couldn’t believe we just won the gold medal and it was an on-top-of-theworld, that kind of feeling.” But Team USA remained true to its word. The U.S. won with defense first. Cash made six saves, recording his third tournament shutout. He finished as the Paralympics’ top goaltender with a 4-1 record, 0.41 goals against average and a 95.56 save percentage. Defense is what helped the team four years ago — and it helped the U.S. again. And it means the world to players like Sweeney. “It’s just wild cause it’s something you hear about people winning gold medals and everything that they go through and
ABOVE: U.S. goalkeeper Steven Cash was named the top goaltender of the 2014 Paralympics in Sochi, Russia
everything they give up to be able to achieve that goal and then
PHOTO © WHEELCHAIR SPORTS FEDERATION/MICHAEL A CLUBINE
realizing that … kind of baffles my mind. As soon as we won it,
I was so exhausted from that game. It was just a tough game and
BELOW: USA sledge hockey players Paul Schaus (left), Josh Sweeney and Rico Roman display their 2014 Paralympic gold medals after the team’s championship game victory over host Russia.
I was just kind of like, ‘Alright, this is cool. We won the Para-
PHOTO © JOE KUSUMOTO PHOTOGRAPHY
sitting down on the ice I just remember thinking ‘Is this for real, you know? Did this actually just happen?’” Sweeney says. “And
lympic gold medal.’ I think it’s still kind of setting in now. I don’t think it’s still fully even hit me of what we accomplished.”
40 I StandUp I SPRING 2014
“Gold Defense” article courtesy of Sport ‘N Spokes Magazine.
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FALLON FOX –
An Unintended StandUp Magazine’s goal is to redefine what makes a true champion, athletes who exhibit good sportsmanship and courage not only on the field of competition but also in our shared society. They are the ones who rise to meet a challenge and make a positive impact wherever they may be. We share those positive stories of athletes from every sport who accept this newly-defined mantle of a champion, those who understand the importance of being a positive role model by standing up, by showing true integrity in every area of their lives.
Fallon Fox is just such a champion. As the first transgender fighter in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), she is definitely a force to be reckoned with. While she is a winning fighter in the cage, she is also an influential advocate for the transgender community, having received an Emery Award in 2013 from the Hetrick Martin Institute (HMI) for her LGBT advocacy efforts. This March she was also named to the 2014 Trans 100 list of prominent and influential transgender individuals actively working to improve life for the transgender community. Fox has the courage to face her opponents in all phases of her professional and personal life, finally living openly and honestly as the woman she always knew she was from the time she was a sixyear-old boy. LGBT is the collective abbreviation for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community members and then there are designations within that, ones that more closely define different segments of the community. But the “T” part is the group most often overlooked and discriminated against, even by some members of the LGB community. Fox is not a publicity hound out for 15-minutes of fame nor is she a cross dresser or a drag queen. Fox is a pioneer, blazing a trail for other transgender and transsexual athletes and non-athletes alike to be able to live an authentic and open life. As with all pioneers, in addition to the honors and awards she receives from those who admire her courage, she also faces the brunt of peoples’ prejudices, anger and degrading insults from those who are offended and frightened by what they don’t understand. Not simply a respected athlete, she is also a talented artist and writer as well as a devoted mom to her daughter – she is a bright, intelligent woman who earns the respect of those who get to know her. I first met her in 2013 not long after she came out and I continue to be impressed by her. If you don’t know what it means to be transsexual (meaning you don’t identify with your birth gender), if you don’t understand transgender biology, if you can’t walk the proverbial mile in someone else’s shoes, she will educate you with straight talk in a calm but direct manner; she pulls no punches, either inside or outside the MMA cage. Although she’s often referred to as transgender, she feels that term is too broad for her personal experience — she considers herself to be part of the transsexual category within the broader transgender umbrella. “What happened with me is something specific,” she said. “I’m a transsexual woman.” Even though she’s very articulate, she admits it’s hard for her to verbalize what it feels like to know deep in your heart that your birth gender is the wrong one. “It’s hard” she says, “because the phrase ‘woman trapped in a man’s body’ is thrown around a lot, but that’s like shorthand. It’s deeper than that. There’s so much more to it.” Fox didn’t set out to become a champion, a spokesperson for the transgender community — she just wanted to finally have the physical body that matched who she was emotionally, she wanted to finally feel comfortable in her own skin and just live her life like everyone else. In an interview with The New York Times just months after she came out she said that “I want the public to know how it feels, the fear of being
42 I StandUp I SPRING 2014
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By Connie Wardman • PHOTOS COURTESY OF TOMBA-IMAGES PHOTOGRAPHY
d Champion
scrutinized, of being outed. … I don’t want to talk about it, really,”
(SI) with her story which appeared on the SI website. To fully
she said. “I don’t want to. I never set out to do this. But I have to.”
understand the traumatic impact of that call, you first need to
The reason she had to talk about it? It was the dreaded
know her background.
“call” she’d been anticipating for some time, letting her know
The facts are that Fallon Fox started life as Boyd Burton, the
that her medical records, what she had regarded as part of her
middle child of strict and homophobic Evangelical Christian
personal and private information, had finally been invaded. It
parents with Pentecostal roots in the economically depressed area
came from a reporter with an MMA news site asking about her
of Toledo, Ohio. Always more comfortable with women and girls,
medical history.
she wanted to be like them and, as a child, she thought all males
While Fox had always planned to share her story, she wanted
felt the same way. Her interest in sports had started in high school
to do it on her own terms and had, in fact, been making a
where she joined the wrestling team to protect herself, both at
documentary, “Game Face,” with Michiel Thomas, a Los Ange-
school and in her violent neighborhood. With a slight build and
les-based filmmaker. But now, refusing to lie about her circum-
a café au lait complexion thanks to her ethnically-mixed heritage,
stances and unwilling to share the story with the reporter making
she faced racially-provoked beatings “from both sides.”
the call, on March 5, 2013 she went direct to Sports Illustrated
Adolescence only added a deeper compulsion to have a
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female body and more confusion about her sexual identity. It
sponded, “Oh cool. Can we do something else now?” Recounting
wasn’t until she was 17 that she heard the word “transgender” on
this story Fox said “She took it well. I think when kids are
a television program — it’s what gave her a first inkling about
younger, they don’t have these preconceived notions of what a
what might be going on in her life. When Fox eventually came
transsexual person is.”
out to her parents, their response was to send her for gay conversion therapy.
At that point Fox dropped out of college and for the next several years was a long-distance trucker to fund her transition
While her deeply embedded desire to be a woman never
process. Finally in 2006, after a period of required hormone
changed, she really worked at trying to “fix” herself. She said that
replacement therapy and dressing like a woman, she made an
everything was on the line – not being “fixed” could mean the
8,000-mile, 17-hour trip to Thailand for gender reassignment
loss of her family, her friends, even her daughter, of going to
surgery, breast augmentation and hair transplant surgery at the
eternal hell with no reprieve. So if the therapy worked, if she
Bangkok National Hospital. After a six-week recovery stay, Fallon
could be “fixed,” she wanted to try to make it work.
Fox flew back to the U.S. as the woman she always knew she was.
First thinking she might be gay, Fox had grown up experi-
She later had facial surgeries to remove the heavier male features
menting, trying to discover what was right for her while still
— her hairline was raised, her brow was lifted and her jaw line
following her family’s expected traditional path for their “son.”
was smoothed out.
After getting her girlfriend pregnant, Fox did the “right thing”
Once again, she did it all alone; she divorced in 2007 and no
and got married at 19, joining the Navy to take care of her new
longer speaks to her parents. Moving to Chicago, she built a new
family. But her internal churning never stopped. So after a four-
life as a single mom with total custody of her daughter, this time
year enlistment and some time at the University of Toledo, her
driving a school bus and working as a diesel truck mechanic to
world fell apart due to all the psychological stress she was under
support them.
— she recognized that she was at a vital crossroad in her life.
It was during her trips to the gym to get her body back in
Her “feelings of gender,” as she describes it, were so intense
shape that she discovered MMA. Seeing women fight and earn
she knew she had to figure out what to do about her life. “My
respect inspired her. She happened to see a video on female
hair was falling out, which wasn’t good for my psyche,” she said,
MMA fighter Megumi Fujii and videos of other women fighters,
“and I knew I couldn’t wait because the longer you spend not transitioning, the more the effects of aging make the transition not so pleasant.” So she decided to focus on her transition process and how to fund it. The process is extensive and expensive — it is certainly not what some people might assume is the easy thing to do. She also sat her then-four year old daughter down for a talk. “I told her that I felt I should have been born a woman and that it was really, really important to me. I told her the doctor was going to help me become a woman.” To which her daughter re-
44 I StandUp I SPRING 2014
Fallon Fox vs. Heather Bassett in March 21, 2014 XFO MMA bantamweight fight in Chicago
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saying she really admired their combined toughness and femi-
replacement therapy (HRT) for a specified time, transgender in-
ninity. “It was like, wow, women are fighting,” she said. “They
dividuals should be allowed to compete with their legal gender.
were doing it bare knuckles. No gloves. I wanted to do that.”
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) set its policy on
MMA has grown beyond its bare knuckle roots, however —
transgender athletes in 2004 with the following rules to compete:
fighters now wear four ounce gloves. What she really likes about MMA is what she calls its “intelligent aggression” and “three-dimensional fighting” where you
• They must have had gender reassignment surgery. • The must have legal recognition of their assigned gender. • They must have at least two years of hormone therapy.
use all your mental and physical capacities to gain an advantage over your opponent. In 2010 her quest to become an MMA
In an interview about Fallon Fox, Dr. Marci Bowers explains
fighter began in earnest when she went to the Midwest Training
why Fox has “no effective competitive advantage” as a transgen-
Center in the Chicago area and began serious training that
der woman. With HRT, physical strength diminishes and both
included Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Muay Thai, boxing, wrestling and
muscle mass and bone density decrease. Bowers adds that post-
ground and pound-specific training.
operative transgender women typically have less testosterone
By the next year she had turned professional and became
than their competitors, something that Fox confirms. “Any of the
known as the Queen of Swords. While she was willing to reveal
women I’m competing against,” she said, “my testosterone levels
her medical history to licensing commissions, she had never
are drastically lower than theirs; it’s almost nothing.”
wanted it to be open knowledge for her opponents and fans.
At 5-foot-6 and weighing between 135-to-145 pounds,
But since she was the first MMA transgender female fighter,
depending on whether or not she’s in training for a fight, Fox will
there were questions about licensing her — the rules hadn’t
be 39 this coming November. She has won four of her five
before included this possibility. It raised the question if someone
professional fights and she’s looking forward to another match
who was born male could be allowed to fight as a female against
— MMA is her passion. And she has earned the respect and
other females.
support of many in the MMA community who not only admire
It was immediately following her second professional match on March 2, 2013 against Ericka Newsome in Coral Gables,
her skill as a fighter but also her courage to face the ignorance and anger of her detractors.
Florida when the “call” came that prompted her to take control
The reality is that she will forever be known as the first trans-
of the situation and call SI to share her story. Now that her
gender MMA fighter — she will never have a truly private life
personal medical records were public knowledge, it triggered the
again no matter how much she longs for it. But she also won’t
question of whether or not transgender athletes have an unfair
back away from her unintended role as a champion. To set the
advantage over their competitors. And while the question was a
record straight, the Queen of Swords, her fight name, was a
legitimate one to be examined, sadly, in many cases it took on the
conscious choice she made after researching its tarot card mean-
aspect of an old-fashioned witch hunt, used as an unexamined
ing. “While I don’t believe in magic or tarot cards having any real
assumption to support and defend people’s sexist and homopho-
effect on our lives,” she said, “I like the sentiment behind the
bic/transphobic prejudices.
Queen of Swords character.”
The question of unfair advantage by transgender athletes has
The Queen of Swords really is an apt description of Fallon
now been answered definitively by the medical community
Fox. It represents a powerful woman who is honest, astute, witty
involved in transgender medicine. These athletes do not have an
and direct — a keen observer of life. She knows her own worth
unfair advantage. Yet it continues to haunt transgender athletes
and has used her share of the painful life lessons we all experience
like Fox due to a lack of awareness as well as old-fashioned bigotry.
to become wise, not bitter. It would be hard to find a nickname
According to current medical findings, after taking hormone
that is better suited to her.
The reality is that she will forever be known as the first transgender MMA fighter — she will never have a truly private life again no matter how much she longs for it. But she also won’t back away from her unintended role as a champion. SPRING 2014 I StandUp I 45
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FROM THE BOSTON
M
R
N
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MARATHON SURVIVORS – By Miriam Latto Photos courtesy of Dear World
IT
was April 15, 2013 … slightly more than a year ago that we witnessed the horrific effects of
two pressure cooker bombs that went off at the 117th Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring approximately 264 others. The physical damage inflicted was not only to the athletes running in the Marathon, it also included spectators, marathon workers and first responders. Because the bombs were low to the ground, many suffered lower leg injuries. At least 16 people lost one limb and there were three who lost more than one limb. Now enter Robert X. Fogarty with his camera and Dear World website project. He began the project in 2009 by photographing the people of New Orleans who, after surviving Hurricane Katrina, wrote “love notes to the city” on their bodies. Fogarty says, “We aren’t changing the world but we take pictures of people who are. … We learned that you can never lose your voice and over the past three years, I’ve looked into the eyes of thousands. They’ve shared their hopes and fears, their
KEEP RUNNING
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WE AREN’T CHANGING THE WORLD BUT WE TAKE PICTURES OF PEOPLE WHO ARE. … WE LEARNED THAT YOU CAN NEVER LOSE YOUR VOICE AND OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS, I’VE LOOKED INTO THE EYES OF THOUSANDS.
losses and joy with me regardless of their religion, race or language.” He says that they share their “Stories of hope. Stories of struggle. Stories of a brighter day.” The brave survivors of Boston and beyond continue to run, walk, live, love and thrive in spite of what they’ve gone through physically, mentally and emotionally. And so we allow the survivors of the Boston Marathon bombing (some of them returning to the marathon finish line for the first time since the bombing) to share with you their stories of hope, struggle and a brighter day through their Dear World love notes. As we face difficulties in our own lives, let us be inspired by these survivors. Let us rise to meet the challenges in our lives with the same brave spirit of good sportsmanship, leadership and determination of these champions, a spirit which is so elegantly summed up in the message of one survivor — “keep running!”
48 I StandUp I SPRING 2014
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Postscript: At this year’s 118th Boston Marathon held on April 21st, husband and wife survivors who each lost a leg in the 2013 bombing rolled across the finish line of the 26.2-mile course together in handcycles. Newly married Patrick Downes and Jessica Kensky went to the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon to watch the runners cross and wound up suffering severe injuries. At this year’s race they rode side-by-side in the handcycle race, completing it in approximately two hours and fourteen minutes. They rolled crossed the finish line smiling and holding hands.
Photographer Robert X. Fogarty’s images also include recognizable people like Susan Sarandon, Elle Macpherson, Deepak Chopra and Drew Brees. He has worked with organizations and universities and his works have been featured in the Washington Post, CNN, the New York Times and PBS. His distinct portraits have been called a “loudspeaker for the world.”
KEEP RUNNING
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FITNESS
By Mark Moon
Weight Train for Fat Loss
B
URN AN EXTRA 16,000 CALORIES A YEAR! Weight training is just as effective for fat loss as it is for building muscle, so fear not ladies and gents — working with weights won’t turn you into an oversized ball of rippling muscle … unless you want it to. Weight training will help you lose weight, get in shape and tighten all those flabby areas you’ve been covering up. In fact, according to a study in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, exercisers who complete an hour-long weight training workout burned an average of 100 more calories in the 24 hours afterward than they did when they hadn’t lifted weights. At three sessions a week, that’s almost 16,000 calories a year or more than two kilograms of fat! The results don’t end there though. More importantly, resistance training will help decrease your body fat percentage by increasing lean muscle, improving your overall strength to help prevent injuries performing everyday activities. And resistance training will help increase bone density. While extremely important for everyone, bone density is especially important for females who tend to be more susceptible to breaks and fractures as they age.
... resistance training will help decrease your body fat percentage by increasing lean muscle...
50 I StandUp I SPRING 2014
HERE ARE THREE TIPS TO ENSURE YOU GET THE RIGHT RESULTS: TAKE THE HIGH INTENSITY CHALLENGE Don’t be scared of intensity. Use medium weights that challenge you over the entire course of your workout, and use steady movements and full range of motion during the exercise. You should be challenged to finish the last few repetitions of each exercise. MINIMAL REST BETWEEN SETS When training for fat loss, you only need short breaks between each exercise. Perform multiple exercise sets, resting about 15 seconds between exercises. As you alternate from one exercise to the next, your muscle gets recovery, but your heart rate and the workout intensity don’t. RECOVERY EQUALS RESULTS Taking the time to cool down and reduce your stress levels postworkout will help put your body into a fat burning state and calm down your mind as well. Stretching will also help prevent injury and promote lean muscle growth and exercise recovery. Take the right approach to your workout routine and you’ll not only develop a lean, mean fat-fighting machine, you’ll also be burning more calories when you’re not in the gym. It’s a win-win situation — really! Mark Moon is one of today’s leading health and wellness trainers, and a Blood Type Diet expert.
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RESEARCH
By Douglas E. Abrams
New Study Links High School Sports Aggression and Dating Violence
T
HE UPCOMING ISSUE of the Journal of Adolescent Health features a new study that warrants attention from parents, teachers and coaches of boys who play high school football and basketball. The study found that boys in these two interscholastic sports were nearly twice as likely as other boys to have recently abused their girlfriends in dating relationships. Boys who played both sports were twice as likely to have been abusive, and boys who played only football were 50 percent more likely. The study surveyed 1,648 male California high school athletes who had had at least one relationship with a girl for more than a week. The researchers, led by Dr. Heather McCauley of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, found a link between dating violence and what they call “hyper-masculine attitudes.” The researchers found these attitudes more prevalent in football and basketball players than in boys who played other sports such as soccer, wrestling, baseball, or track and field. The new study does not suggest that all, or even most, high school football and basketball players are prone to intimate violence. But the findings do suggest the value of violenceprevention efforts by parents and coaches who raise and mentor high school boys who play these two sports. To be on the safe side, perhaps these prevention efforts should also reach boys in other contact or collision sports. Sports often depend
Sports often depend on controlled aggression within the rules of the game, but the rules of the game of life are much different than the rules that prevail on the athletic field. 52 I StandUp I SPRING 2014
on controlled aggression within the rules of the game, but the rules of the game of life are much different than the rules that prevail on the athletic field. PARENTS Parents come first. Peers and adults outside the home influence children and adolescents but parents remain primarily responsible for teaching social values and the essentials of healthy interpersonal relations. It should not take much for responsible parents to counsel their sons about mutual respect when they begin dating. Because adolescent dating violence resembles studenton-student bullying, emerging research about bullying prevention can be helpful here. Children are not born with attitudes that reject violence and they are not born respectful. Nonviolence and respect can be taught and violence and disrespect can be unlearned. Researchers have found that parents can help prevent bullying by maintaining a household that rejects intimidation and fosters nonviolent conflict management while stressing civility and empathy. Studies have also shown increased propensity for bullying among children who are raised in homes that are marked by abuse, lack of clear disciplinary rules or the absence of responsible parental supervision. TEACHERS AND COACHES Most school-age children attend public schools where teachers interact with students daily during the academic year. These professionals teach academic subjects but they also teach what the Supreme Court calls “the boundaries of socially appropriate behavior” and “the shared values of a civilized social order.” Schools do not displace parental influence but the Court is right that schools remain “a principal instrument in awakening the child to cultural values, in preparing him for later professional training and in helping him to adjust normally to his environment.” This preparation and adjustment can be centerpieces of anti-violence and anti-bullying curricula
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designed for the general student body, athletes and non-athletes alike. In an upcoming issue of the Journal of Interpersonal Violence, Dr. McCauley and several of her colleagues identify a special role for “athletic coaches as violence prevention advocates.” The point is well taken, not only because coaches are teachers in every sense of the word but also because coaches have special opportunities, and thus special responsibilities, to influence their players with high standards. Interscholastic athletes may spend more time with their coaches than with any classroom teacher and they may hold special respect for the coach forged by team cohesiveness. Beginning at pre-season players meetings and continuing throughout the schedule and afterwards, the coach should instruct that wholesome personal relationships depend on keeping hands off other people, including girls. For athletes accustomed to local prominence and perhaps special treatment for years, the coach must dispel notions that athletic prowess confers entitlement to commit acts of violence outside the rules and expectations that apply to other students. In triumphs and setbacks alike, aggression must be left on the field, replaced in the greater community by civility and mutual respect. The recent study of high school dating violence and similar studies of dating violence committed by male collegiate athletes means that prevention efforts by parents at home, teachers in school and coaches during and after the season must be as persistent as the risks they seek to counter. No prevention effort can reduce the number of unwanted incidents to zero but significant reduction remains a worth-
while goal because every incident prevented means a victim spared. Dr. McCauley and her researchers point, for example, to positive results achieved by “Coaching Boys into Men,” a program that seeks to “inspire men to teach boys the importance of respecting women and that violence never equals strength.”www.futureswithoutviolence.org/content/features/detail/811/ Education is key to socialization and parents, teachers and coaches are educators. Each performs a distinctive role but the ultimate goal remains common. The unpalatable alternative to sustained prevention efforts can sometimes be mere reaction to incidents after they occur. Recent national headlines from Steubenville, Ohio and Maryville, Missouri illustrate that adult intervention appears too late once a girl has suffered physical and emotional injury and once the perpetrator has suffered lasting social stigma or legal punishment.
[Sources: McCauley HL, Jaime MCD, Tancredi DJ, Silverman JG, Decker MR, Austin SB, Jones K, Miller E, Differences in Adolescent Relationship Abuse Perpetration and Gender-Inequitable Attitudes by Sport Among Male High School Athletes, Journal of Adolescent Health (in press 2014); Jaime MC, McCauley HL, Tancredi DJ, Nettiksimmons J, Decker MR, Silverman JG, O’Connor B, Stetkevich N, Miller E, Athletic Coaches as Violence Prevention Advocates, Journal of Interpersonal Violence (in press 2014); Reuters, Teen Boys Who Play Sports Twice as Likely to Admit Abusing a Girlfriend: Study, Mar. 26, 2014; Douglas E. Abrams, A Coordinated Public Response to School Bullying, in Our Promise: Achieving Educational Equity for America’s Children (2009)]
Douglas E. (Doug) Abrams is a law professor at the University of Missouri and a contributing author to the Ask Coach Wolff website that deals with timely sports parenting issues where this article first appeared.
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