Celebration Cornell Women in Sports
February is a snowy, icy and, luckily, short month. It is a month that usually keeps us all inside being entertained by sports on television. This year we get a couple more weeks of NFL football, the run-up to NCAA March Madness, NHL Hockey and NBA Basketball, AND the 2022 Winter Olympics!
I feel like there is a little competitive athlete in every one of us who participated in, coached, drove to or watched little league and t-ball, pee wee leagues, swim teams, gymnastic teams, powder puffs and flag teams, y-youth teams, junior hockey, lacrosse, and tennis. And the Olympics highlights the things we all love about sports–the values, the joy, the humanity of it all!
Featured in the 2022 Olympics are 7 Cornellians–all in women’s sports (even though one is a man)! Current student and now silver medalist Karen Chen ’23 is on the US Figure Skating Team and current Cornell Women’s Ice Hockey Head Coach Doug Derraugh ’91 is an assistant coach for Team Canada. The other five are Cornellians and all ice hockey players. Four are competing for Team Canada and one for the Czech Republic. Read more here and here.
It is very fitting that the Big Red is being represented by so many women in Olympic women’s sports as Cornell and the country celebrate the 50th anniversary of Title IX. If you haven’t been following Cornell Women’s Athletics 50th you can catch up on social media–Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. And watch this great video clip. You will be proud!
As part of the University’s celebration of Title IX, the Class of 1974 (we were there when it happened!) is sponsoring a Cornell Women’s Athletics webinar featuring Corey Earle ’07 (Cornell historian) and a panel of two Class of 1974 women athletes and two current student athletes. Panelists include:
Linda Smith McKeown ’74 – ice hockey & track
Molly McBee Miller Ettenger ’74 – ice hockey & tennis
DeeDee Maizes ’22 – swimming
Summer Parker-Hall ’25 – basketball (and recipient of our Class of 1974 Scholarship)
We invite you to join us for this look back at the history of women’s athletics at Cornell. The webinar is Wednesday, February 23rd, at 8:00 pm ET. Register here.
Go Big Red! Go USA! Stay warm and be well!