Today is International Women's Day, so it seems appropriate to share some of the Nomad's favorite female athletes. The three women highlighted today have inspired me in my life. They have progressed their sports and been stand out citizens.
Layne Beachley
Layne Beachley is a 7-time World Champion including six consecutive titles from 1998-2003. This Australian Hall-of-Famer really set the stage for modern women's surfing and helped to close the gap between male and female surfing.
Gretchen Bleiler
Gretchen Bleiler has 4 X-Games gold medals and an Olympic silver on her resume. She became a pro at 15 years old and has been showing the boys how its done since the early 90's. On top of that, she is active in several environmental organizations, including stopglobalwarming.org. I tip my hat to this trendsetter.
Cindy Whitehead
Have you heard of Cindy? Cindy is a former professional skateboarder and has been called by some an OG in the industry. As a child she signed her name "Andy" so she could play baseball on the boy's team in Manhattan Beach Little League. She took up skateboarding at age 15. Back in the 70's, when so much skateboarding was done in pools and dominated by guys, Cindy was out there paving the way for gals. She became a pro at 17 years old and to this day remains the only female skater to be featured in a 2-page article plus centerfold in a skateboarding magazine. She founded an organization that empowers female athletes and runs the website, Girl is NOT a 4 Letter Word.
These women are great examples for all young athletes and inspire me to push a little harder.
What women do you strive to be like?
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