Tag Archives: lindsey vonn

“Shop To Win” Commercials From Kohl’s: Clever Or Cringeworthy?

Winona Dimeo-EdigerApril 3, 2012 //
Androgynous Athletes
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A Sports Bra That Works
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Top 10 Olympic Athletes
Our favorites from the 2010 Winter Olympics. Read More »

If you’ve turned on the TV at all in the past couple of weeks you’ve surely seen the “Shop to Win” commercials from Kohl’s. If not, here’s the general premise: a legendary female athlete (swimmer Dara Torres, skier Lindsey Vonn, and soccer star Mia Hamm have all been featured) sits in an empty room and talks about the intense experience of competing at a sport’s highest level. “When I’m out there, I am totally in the zone,” says Torres. “It’s a real adrenaline rush,” says Vonn. “I get pretty excited when I score,” says Hamm. But wait, there’s a twist! These women aren’t talking about sports… Keep reading »

5 Claws-Out Athlete Cat Fights

adminFebruary 26, 2010 //

Catfight alert! U.S. skier Julia Mancuso (right) has had it with teammate Lindsey Vonn (left), and is letting the press know all about it. “People are having a hard time reaching their potential because it’s such a struggle for attention,” said Mancuso. “You come to meetings after races and it’s like it’s a bad day if Lindsey didn’t do well.” Her anger might not just be stemming from Vonn’s sometimes distracting photo shoots—Vonn also (maybe) blew Mancuso’s chances of coming in first place in the slalom. When Vonn crashed ahead of Mancuso on the course, officials had to have Mancuso start her run over because of “deteriorating conditions.”

Vonn was not pleased with Mancuso’s words. “It definitely has hurt me that she said some negative things,” Vonn told the Seattle Times. “All I can do is continue to support her like I always have been and hope that she reciprocates that.” [Newser]

I never understood why guys get off on girl fights, but there seems to be a lot of pent-up aggression with female athletes in particular. Check out these exxxtreme clashes, after the jump. Keep reading »

Lindsey Vonn Wins Gold In Downhill Skiing—By 0.56 Of A Second

Jessica WakemanFebruary 18, 2010 //

0.56 of a second is, quite literally, the blink of an eye. But that’s all the time it took Lindsey Vonn to win the Olympic gold medal in yesterday’s women’s downhill skiing competition, beating her rival, fellow American skier Julia Mancuso. What makes Vonn’s win even crazier? The news has been inundated with tongue-wagging about whether Vonn’s bruised right shin would dash her Olympic dreams. But despite her injury — painkillers helped — Vonn raced down the Whistler, British Columbia course in a brisk 1 minute, 44.19 seconds.“It was a fight all the way down but I told myself to keep pushing regardless of the consequences,” Vonn told The New York Times. When she crossed the finish line and saw her name at #1, Vonn fell backwards into the snow, raised her arms in the air and bawled tears of joy. “Seeing my name and the number one next to it was the best feeling I’ve had in my life,” she continued. “I came here to win a gold medal. I stood up to the pressure. I went for it with no fear. I will attack in all the next events; I’ll keep that promise. But I simply can’t feel any happier. And I know I will always have today.” [New York Times] Keep reading »

Why Do The Olympics’ Leading Ladies Keep Getting Injured?

Kelli BenderFebruary 12, 2010 //

Poor Lindsey Vonn. She was on the top of everyone’s list of Winter Olympians to watch, and even graced the cover of Sports Illustrated this week, butt high in the air, next to the words, “America’s Best Woman Skiier Ever.” But, sadly, she’s injured her shin, suffering a deep bruise during practice a week ago that has made putting her ski boot on an “excruciating” endeavor. News of her injury has sent sports stations into a frenzy of calculations on how it will affect her. Vonn remains hopeful that she will be healthy enough for a medal-winning performance, especially since she was slowed down by an injury at the 2006 Olympics that her cost her a top-three finish. [USA]

Interestingly, a study was recently released showing that women in sports suffer more, and from more severe injuries, at least in part because most training regimes are designed for men, who tend to have more resilient ligaments and stronger muscles. This sure seems to be the case. Lindsey is not nearly the only woman whose recent injuries might cost her her Olympic dreams. Here are some other sad stories. Keep reading »

Olympic Skier Sticks Butt In Air, Causes Controversy

Susannah BreslinFebruary 5, 2010 //

What you’re looking at is the cover of Sports Illustrated‘s special Olympic preview issue. The cover model is 25-year-old Olympic hopeful Lindsey Vonn, an alpine ski racer who is the first woman to have won the World Cup back-to-back. While her wins are typically what grab headlines, now it’s this image, one which some people, many of them women, are saying sexually objectifies this female athlete. According to Dr. Nicole M. LaVoi, writing on Women Talk Sports, women rarely appear on the cover of SI, and when they do, it’s typically as a sex object (see: the swimsuit issue). Writes Dr. LaVoi: “When females are featured on the cover of SI, they are more likely than not to be in sexualized poses and not in action — and the most recent Vonn cover is no exception.” So, does Vonn’s cover depict a skier racing down a hill — or an attractive young woman sticking her posterior provocatively in the air? As Chris Chase points out on Yahoo! Sports, the 1992 edition featured downhill racer A.J. Kitt (a man) with his butt in the air, and no one complained that he was being objectified. What’s the deal? Sounds like it’s OK to objectify men, but not women. Double standard, anyone? [Yahoo! Sports] Keep reading »