In Todays World

Fit women are beautiful. Lean legs, six-pack abs,

firm butts, and zero arm flab are an aspiration for the
majority of women in todays society. The proliferation of
female athletic brands, such as Lulu Lemon and Athleta,
as well as the plethora of athletic classes available for women, signify that
Americans have embraced the notion of the feminine athletic persona as a
societal norm. Female athletes are idolized, appearing on the cover of
magazines, such as Sports Illustrated and Womens Health, depicting this
new aspirational physique. This twenty-first century appreciation for the
strong, robust female body is a relatively new phenomenon. In fact, it was
not until the 1990s that one sports heroine defied the current female athlete
stereotypes, causing a shift in Americas perceptions of women in sports.

Who is She?

Anyone familiar with womens soccer recognizes the

name of superstar, Mia Hamm. Mia Hamm revolutionized
the athletic woman by allowing her to be perceived as both
feminine and strong. No longer were the two

Mia Hamm
revolutionized
the athletic
woman by
allowing them to
be perceived as
both feminine
and strong.

characterizations mutually exclusive. Her impact and influence on changing

conventional norms permitted females to become both powerful and
beautiful. In order to fully understand this cultural shift, we must first reflect
upon the American Zeitgeist prior to her arrival on the national soccer stage.

Blast from Past

Lets go back in time and examine the perception of women athletes

before Mia Hamm. In the early 1900s, women maintained a specific role in
society. They were expected to be mothers, supportive housewives, and
caretakers. They were proper ladies who were dependent on their
breadwinning and strong husbands. Women were not supposed to exercise
because they had other motherly chores to which to attend. Therefore, when
women began to participate in sports and other masculine activities of that
time, many concerns and misconceptions began to arise.
According to the book Women in Sports in the United States, many
people at the time started to become highly suspicious of these strong
women because of their deviance from traditional female roles. In the

1920s and 30s, athletic women were even thought to bear debilitating
physiological effects on the reproductive system as well as deeper voices,
facial hair, and overdeveloped arms and legs. In the 1930s doctors in
psychology and psychiatry gave birth to a new diagnosis for this athletic
woman called the Manish lesbian, which was a sort of psychological
disturbance. Athletic women were discriminated against, ostracized, and
hated. Not only were they stereotyped as lesbian, but they also were forced
to solely participate in recreational sports leagues. Even after Title IX was
passed, which brought parity to womens participation sports, females still
received less pay, insignificant funding, and diminutive respect. Although
many incredible athletes, such as tennis all-star Billie Jean King and
basketball player Cheryl Miller, helped change stereotypes of womens
strength and participation in sports, it was Mia Hamm who completed the
metamorphosis and left an everlasting impact on our culture.

Act like a Woman, Play like a Man

Although an activist in the feminist movement, Hamms presence and

personality were a departure from her predecessors. Unlike Billie Jean King
and Cheryl Miller, Mia Hamm acted and looked extremely feminine. Although
she maintained toned soccer legs and rock-solid abs, Hamm was slender
with long brown hair. Not only did she look womanly, but she acted like a

lady, too. Hamms teammate Julie Foudy describes her

as selfless, humble, and graceful. She was even said
to be shy and innocuous. Additionally, Hamm was
heterosexual, thereby debunking the man-ish
lesbian myth from the 1930s. These personality traits
made Mia Hamm feminine in the minds of her fans
regardless of her athletic prowess. Although sweet off
the field, on the field Hamm transformed into an entirely different person.
When the whistle blew for game time, she became determined, strong,
independent, and aggressive. When she played she was a force to be
reckoned with. On the field, Hamm won every header, slid-tackled
opponents, and out-muscled every opponent. Her unique ability to embrace
both gender personalities allowed people to see her athleticism in a new
light. Mia Hamm created a new woman athlete: One in which men wanted to
marry and women wanted to become.

The Undeniable Strength

Mia Hamm embodies strength, both physical and

mental, which allows her talent to be respected and
honored by both genders. Although her persona and
personality won peoples hearts, it was ultimately her
undeniable skill that made her a legend. Hamm scored
158 international goals during her soccer career, which
was more than any player, man or woman. She also
helped lead her team to two World Cup titles and two gold medals in the
Olympics. Because her victories in the World Cup and the Olympics benefited
the United States as a whole, many people began to root for her success. In
fact, in the 1996 Olympic Games, Hamm drew in a massive crowd of 80,000
screaming fans. According to ESPNW, never in history had so many
spectators come to watch a womens sporting event. Her triumph on the
U.S. National team signified more than a boy-versus-girl tennis match. When
Mia Hamm played, no one had to choose sides. Instead, she made everyone
come together and cheer for something bigger than us all: our country.
Hamm also focused on her game and her abilities, which made her a
hero. She did not try to force people to like her or fight for acceptance into
the sport. Instead, she let her play on the field do all of the talking. By doing
this, people began to see a different side to the female athlete.

The Legend

This new female athlete was seen as beneficial to the community

instead of a burden. Without being an overt advocate for the feminist
movement, Mia Hamm became an icon and a pioneer for gender equality in
sports. In fact, she was even named the greatest female athlete in the last
40 years by ESPN. Hamms beauty and strength made her into a celebrity for
all people. According to Forbes magazine, Mia Hamm was the most
marketable female soccer player ever, generating millions of dollars from
endorsement partners. Her success and popularity marked an enormous
change in the way Americans view women. Instead of being diagnosed as
mentally disturbed or discriminated against, Hamm was idolized. Her
appearance on magazines also ignited the sexy and fit female trend that we
all now know and admire. Today, female athletes such as Hope Solo and
Mikaela Shiffrin are featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated, a mens
magazine. Women everywhere obsess over dieting and working out in order
to feel powerful and pretty. Strong women are now beautiful. So ladies, next
time a man checks you out at the gym, you can thank Mia Hamm.

Reflection:
My goal of this essay is to examine how Mia Hamms influence on
society revolutionized peoples perception of athletic women. Today, fit
women are seen as beautiful and powerful. However, this was not always the
case. Although many other prevailing women competitors aided this
transformation, Mia Hamm had the greatest impact.
While writing this essay, I felt like I achieved a lot of success. Usually,
coming up with writing topics for me is difficult. However, this time, I easily
found things to say. I grew up idolizing Mia Hamm, so I knew a lot about her
story and what she stood for, which made writing this paper fun and exciting.
I also was able to locate numerous source documents and articles. There was
one book in particular that I found that spoke in great depths about Mia
Hamms impact on soccer as well as feminism. In addition, I found it
relatively easy to structure this essay. Although I have history in my paper, I
was able to use it to show how she changed the present.
Although I found success at times during this essay, I also faced some
obstacles. Before I came up with the idea to write about Mia Hamm, I
grappled with finding a moment in both the past and present to historicize.
Because of the specificity of my blog topic, I had a difficult time trying to
figure a present moment was that pertained to soccer. Once I pinpointed a
topic, my thoughts could be captured on paper. However, I did run into some
issues trying to cite by hyperlinks when I also needed to use a direct quote. I

was not sure if I should keep the quotations or leave them out and simply
hyperlink.
In all, I had a lot of fun writing this essay and I hope you enjoy it!