GladiatHers® Blog

The Olympics have come and gone.  I must say, aside from Ryan Lochte’s full-on frat bro display of stupidity and utter disrespect, I enjoyed what I saw.  I was unquestionably entertained and inspired.  I actually think that it’s the inspiration piece that really makes the Olympics so great.  Not only are athletes providing entertainment and bragging rights, but they’re using their lives’ work to inspire and teach millions of people.  That’s why we wait in anticipation and wat

We’re six whole days into the 2016 Olympics in Rio and the GladiatHers® of the world have not disappointed. They’re setting personal, Olympic and world records; inspiring us with their stories of perseverance and triumph; and even disappointing us in heartbreaking losses. The Olympics are absolutely meeting and surpassing my expectations. But in the midst of all the greatness, the media and the public have managed to give us far too many moments of mediocrity and stupidity. I

I LOVE the Olympics.  I’m really not even exaggerating when I say that.  I haven’t missed the opportunity to watch any of them since the time I had the slightest bit of control over what I watch.  And for an unreasonably long time, I just KNEW I was going to one day compete in them myself; definitely as a gymnast and then for sure as a sprinter.  Even when my hopes of being a world class athlete were replaced with more realistic goals for this 5’4.5″ frame of mine, my love fo

The 1996 Olympics in Atlanta were huge for Team USA’s women.  That’s why we’re getting another Olympic Flashback from that year, and it’s courtesy of the US Women’s National Soccer Team. In 1991 the International Olympic Committee ruled that women’s soccer would be included in the games for the first time in 1996.  The inaugural tournament included eight teams: the USA, China, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Brazil, Japan and Germany.  Team USA was stacked with legends like Brandi C

Greatness often coincides with consistency.  We expect our greatest athletes to always be great; to always display excellence; to always be on.  But sometimes greatness is found, not in how well you perform, but in how well you get back up from those less than great performances; how well you stare adversity and failure in the face and refuse to back down.  Today’s GladiatHer Crush has given us both levels of greatness.  Over the past year and the span of her young career, Ke

The 2016 Summer Olympic games are less than 2 weeks away.  Athletes have competed in their respective Trials and are set to take take center stage in Rio de Janeiro on August 5th.  In Brazil they will be representing themselves, their families and their countries.  And for some, the opportunity to represent their country is the greatest opportunity of them all.  Olympic athletes are often worshipped as superheroes in their native lands.  It’s no secret that sending athletes w

This morning I found myself in the midst of a debate about late bloomers.  The question at hand: Is it possible to get a scholarship to a NCAA Division I school and not have received any major accolades for your athletic prowess in high school?  Of course, being the fan of underdogs that I am, I was team #YesYouCan.  Well today’s Woman Crush Wednesday proved me right.  Phylicia George is one of the top hurdlers in Canada and the world, but things weren’t always so glamorous o

I mean what’s not to love about this?! #gymnastics #ua #underarmour #olympics #usagymnastics #rio2016 #usa #womeninsports #ruleyourself #gladiathers #WomeninSports