Recently in Women's Sports Category
Donna Orender, The WNBA league president has declares this season the leagues "best year ever". Attendance was up this year by 2.2 percent overall with the help of the new expansion franchise the Atlanta Dream. The overall attendance this year will be more than 1.89 million fans. Even with the economy the way it is, the league was able to sell out 47 games, triple the amount that they sold out during the 2007 season. The national TV audience increased as well this year going up 19 percent in both ratings (0.32) and total viewership (413,000) from the 2007 season. Almost 13 million fans accessed the WNBA website, a jump of 35 percent from last season. Merchandise sales were also up 36 percent from last season.
This is all good news for a league that seemed to be struggling to survive a few years ago. As the game continues to grow and the talent continues to improve more people will become attracted to the game. Orender believes that the women's game is already appealing to all demographics. The league looks like it is going to survive. Talent like rookie sensation Candice Parker will bring more eyes and more business to the league. This season was called the "best year ever" and I have a feeling that the league will continue to grow and have even better seasons in the upcoming years.
Imagine winning an Olympic gold medal all because of a little help from Nike. Now you can sink those three point shots all because of a 369g Hyperdunk basketball shoe... or even get that chance to be the first to cross the finish line while saving the environment! Nike's new Swift Suit has been engineered by performance-enhancing technologies to include an aerographics mesh system made from 100% recycled polyester yarns. Go fast, and go green!
As the Bejing Olympics grow closer, companies such as Nike have been continuously working on lighter, faster, and stronger products for competing athletes.
"In designing the uniforms and footwear for the Beijing Olympics, Nike worked closely with the China Olympic Committee, the China Federations and the athletes themselves. In Beijing alone, hundreds of feet were scanned to determine the specific morphology of Chinese feet.
The Nike Sports Research Lab collaborated with research institutions in Beijing and Shanghai to look into the most common injuries in sports. Nike also interviewed the athletes about their likes and dislikes in terms of equipment. Performance-enhancing technologies such as Aerographics, Flywire and Lunarlite foam were integral to the creation of the apparel and footwear for Beijing 2008.
Throughout the four years of development, 22 federations and 54 designers were involved, and a total of 22 uniforms and 32 pairs of footwear were created."
The WNBA had its first season in June of 1997. The season was during summer because the sports calendar was less crowded so the league had a better chance of success. They began with broadcasts partnerships with NBC, ESPN, and Lifetime and during the first season attracted 50 million viewers. The WNBA is the longest-running and arguably most successful women's professional team sports league in U.S history success.
One thing for certain is that the WNBA would not exist if they did not have a tie with the NBA. All except for two WNBA teams share arenas with the NBA and the Connecticut Sun are the only team to play without sharing the city with an NBA team. When the NBA had it's strike, the WBNA struggled as well. The attendance difference between the NBA and the WNBA is huge. The average attendance of WNBA games, league-wide, is roughly half the average attendance of NBA games. The salaries also differ greatly. If the WNBA ever wants to live up to the NBA they must find away to draw more of a crowd. This would lead to merchandise sales and increase salaries for players.
The WNBA is on it's way to making a bigger profit with the new television contracts they have just signed. They have just unveiled that they have signed an 8 year deal with ESPN/ABC. This deal will also include rights for digital media, will begin in 2009 and go through the league's 20th season in 2016. With this new television deal the WNBA should be able to reach more people and create new fans.
If the WNBA does not start to make a profit the NBA owners will not be willing to support them and many of the teams will fold, putting the league in jeopardy. It costs $3 million to operate a WNBA team for a season, which is nothing to the NBA but something they are not willing to pay for a failing business.
Marynell Meadors was recently named the coach for the new WNBA franchise starting in Atlanta Georgia. This announcement comes ten years after she was selected to be the first WNBA coach of the Charlotte Sting. From 2005- 2007 Meadors was an assistant coach for the Washington Mystics. Atlanta will begin play with the 2008 WNBA season. The still-unnamed Atlanta franchise is owned by Ron Terwilliger, who said he was impressed by Meadors' experience as a coach and knowledge of players in the WNBA and in college
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Wednesday's announcement that Meadors will be Atlanta's first coach comes 10 years after she became the first coach for the WNBA's Charlotte Sting. Meadors was an assistant coach for the Washington Mystics from 2005-07.
Atlanta will begin play in 2008.
Meadors, 64, won more than 500 games on the college level at Tennessee Tech and Florida State. She was the first coach at Tennessee Tech, where Georgia coach Andy Landers began his career as her assistant.
The still-unnamed Atlanta franchise is owned by Ron Terwilliger, who said he was impressed by Meadors' experience as a coach and knowledge of players in the WNBA and in college.
"She knows how to operate a WNBA team and go through the start-up phase," Terwilliger said.
Atlanta was named last month as the WNBA's 14th team.
from usatoday.com
The LPGA has repeatedly tried to overcome the chauvinistic PGA. more and more we hear about PGA events and not LPGA events. However, pop star Justin Timberlake has agreed to host an LPGA event in 2008. An avid golf fan, Timberlake saw the oppurtunity to bring together some "r and r" and work together. The LPGA realized that if the male-dominanted sports leagues can use women as a prop to gather fans, then why not bring a sexy male superstar like Timberlake to attract female fans to their event.
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Justin Timberlake is known for bringing Sexy Back, but according to ESPN.com, JT will be hosting a LPGA Tour event in Las Vegas in 2008. The singer is supposedly a golf enthusiast and is excited about the chance to work with the LPGA. "I couldn't be more excited," said Timberlake, who plays to a 6-handicap, according to a Golf Digest ranking that was released earlier this year. "We will make sure to make this event unique and memorable."
The Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, part of the tour's Fall Series, will be played Oct. 13-19, 2008, at TPC-Summerlin. As part of his involvement, Timberlake will play in the Wednesday celebrity pro-am and host a concert during tournament week.
Hopefully Justin can bring the LPGA's golf swing back, just as good as he brings Sexy Back!
http://blog.cortland.edu/dmlykos/2007/11/14/bringin-the-golf-swing-back/
