Dame Ellen MacArthur, Sailing British sailor Dame Ellen MacArthur first came to prominence in this male-dominated sport around 2001 when she took 2nd place in the Vendée Globe Solo round-the-world Yacht Race, earning her an MBE for services to sport. In 2003 she captained a crewed round-the-world record attempt in the yacht Kingfisher 2, but unfortunately they were halted with a broken mast in the Southern Ocean. This didn’t stop her. On 28th November 2004, she began her attempt to break the solo non-stop round-the-world record, during which time she set records for the fastest solo voyage to the equator, past the Cape of Good Hope, past Cape Horn and back to the equator again. She crossed the finishing line on the 7th February 2005, beating the previous record set by Frenchman Francis Joyon, by 32h 35m 49s (covering 27,354 nautical miles in 1718h 18m 33s). Joyon later reclaimed the record in 2008. MacArthur has been appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in recognition of her achievement, making her the youngest female recipient of the honour in modern history.
Katie Hnida, American Football NCAA Kicker American footballer Katharine Anne "Katie" Hnida (born 17 th May 1981 in Colorado) became the first woman to score in college football's highest division, the NCAA Division I-A. She accomplished this as placekicker for the University of New Mexico Lobos on 30th August 2003 by kicking two extra points. Hnida’s career started after Rick Neuheisel, University of Colorado football team coach, invited her to join as a walk-on placekicker due to her success in high school. When Neuheisel left in 1998 his replacement, Gary Barnett, kept the offer open but Hnida didn’t see any playing time. Eventually, Hnida transferred to New Mexico as a walk-on placekicker where she played in the 2002 Las Vegas Bowl against UCLA. Controversy surrounded Hnida when, in 2004, she told Sports Illustrated that she had been sexually abused by some of her Colorado teammates. Later that same week, her former coach, Barnett, stated, "We have not done anything wrong, there isn't a shred of evidence to this date to back up any allegations that have been made, and there won't be." He went on to say, "It was obvious Katie was not very good. She was awful. You know what guys do? They respect your ability. You can be 90 years old, but if you can go out and play, they'll respect you. Katie was not only a girl, she was terrible. OK? There's no other way to say it. She couldn't kick the ball through the uprights." These comments, along with other actions, saw Barnett suspended. In 2010, Hnida became the kicker for the Fort Wayne FireHawks in the Continental Indoor Football League, becoming the league's first female player and only the second female professional football player in history. Hnida played in the first three games of the team's season but was released later that year after developing a blood clot in her kicking leg. She continues to play semi-pro football, kicking for the Colorado Cobras in the Colorado Football Conference and the KC Mustangs in the Interstate Football League.
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Autumn/Winter 2013
Barefoot Running Magazine