In 1996, Kerri Strug earned her place in history when she helped the American gymnastics team secure Olympic gold with a heroic vault on a damaged ankle. In today’s Washington Post, we learned that Sarah “Barracuda” Palin had a similar moment in the spotlight:
No one gave the Warriors any chance to win a title when they drew East High, a large Anchorage school that had beaten them by 40 points earlier in the season, as their first-round opponent in the state tournament. Wasilla won, 50-48, but shortly before time expired, Palin came down wrong and sprained her ankle, an injury she would play through during the rest of the tournament.
In the championship game they met another large institution, Service High. Wasilla took a comfortable early lead, but Palin, playing on her heavily wrapped, swollen, blue ankle, couldn’t move well enough to defend, and Service began to catch up. Teeguarden motioned her to the bench. “I just had to get her out, it was painful to watch her,” he says. Palin was devastated as she took a seat, and the coach put an arm around her. “Without you we wouldn’t be here right now,” he said. “You’re not done.”
She remained on the bench until slightly less than a minute remained. Then Teeguarden turned and motioned her back into the game. Wasilla was nursing just a four-point lead, and Palin was one of his coolest heads. He wanted her on the floor.
With about 30 seconds left, Palin was fouled. She went to the free-throw line. If she missed, Service would get the ball with a chance to cut Wasilla’s lead to just two points. If she made the shot, her team would be up five — making it a three-possession game. She licked her fingertips, dribbled the ball a time or two, and knocked down the shot. “That iced it,” Teeguarden says. “At that point we exhaled.” Wasilla won, 58-53.
…Palin had scored nine points in three games, and her sprain had worsened into a stress fracture.
We already knew that Palin helped her team win, but did we also know about her “heavily wrapped, swollen, blue ankle”? It might be worth pointing out that making myth out of very poor decision making by coaches and young athletes is not the stuff of shining examples. But, in the meantime, go Warriors!
Yep. Win at any cost, even if the actual victory in the larger scheme of things. Clearly something she learned early from great coaches.
Posted by Laura on Thu 2 Oct 2008 at 02:06 PM
I don't know what 'Laura' was getting at, but the idea of athletes playing 'through the pain' is actually considered very noble especially if the team wins. We admire athletes, amateur and pro who do this. It bothers us only when it's not their choice, or 'the program' demands they 'juice up' or get cut.
Posted by Joe on Thu 2 Oct 2008 at 03:28 PM
There's a difference, of course:
Kerri Strug is whip-smart and went to Stanford. Then she worked for the Treasury department. (Not making this up!)
It's fair to say Kerri Strug has more experience with the federal government than Sarah Palin does.
Posted by Aaron on Thu 2 Oct 2008 at 03:43 PM
An interesting story. Another bit of sports-realted trivia: Obama played on a state championship high school basketball team in Hawaii.From an AP story:
"He'd be the first one to practice, and after practice, he'd go to the park and play more," said McLachlin, who is the father of PGA Tour golfer Parker McLachlin. "So his passion for the game is unmatched by most of the players I've ever had."
Starting center Dan Hale, the youngest member of the championship team, remembers Obama as a tough competitor who wasn't into talking trash.
"If he did, he would always cap it with a smile," Hale said. "So there was never an edge to it in that sense. But if two guys were tied up with the ball, he's not going to back down. He was a guy that would get in there and fight for it."
The lone lefty, Obama was often called upon to bust zone defenses with his abilities to slash in the lane, improvise and hit the mid-range jumper. Players say Obama's up-tempo and freewheeling style sometimes didn't fit into McLachlin's structured game plans, modeled after UCLA's legendary coach John Wooden.
Obama was frustrated at times but stuck with the team's goals, his teammates recalled. "A lot of times, he didn't agree with coach. He sucked it up," said teammate Alan Lum. "A lot of times he did question, in respect. It wasn't anything negative. Perseverance is what he learned, because he really had to be a total team player."
The team's music was Obama's responsibility. Players grooved to the sounds of Earth, Wind and Fire and idolized the moves of pro star Dr. J, Julius Erving, whose picture hung on Obama's bedroom wall.
Obama continued playing pickup games at Harvard, where his long arms, quick first step and solid jumper made him difficult to guard, said friend and former schoolmate Hill Harper.
"I truly believe the way someone plays basketball definitely gives you a sense of who they are in their character," said Harper, now an actor who is raising money for Obama's campaign.
Michelle Obama may believe that as well. When she began dating Obama, she asked her brother, Craig Robinson, to test her new boyfriend on the court. Robinson, a former hoops star at Princeton and Oregon State's newly hired coach, reported back that Obama was confident and unselfish.
Posted by mwh on Thu 2 Oct 2008 at 06:00 PM
she is so awsome the people who write this write about her good
Posted by samantha gracie on Fri 21 Nov 2008 at 09:25 AM
im writting a report about her in school she inspires me
Posted by samantha gracie on Fri 21 Nov 2008 at 09:29 AM