Women Speaking Up!

And speaking so profoundly I add. Two incredible ladies in two very different sports.

First up, Tai Babalonia, has been making the rounds on FB if you are a friend. You can go here to the You Tube page with all parts of the nine part interview. Or go The Skating Lesson page on Facebook and check out the podcasts there.

She has a lot to say and it is well worth a listen.

Part 6 of the interview has caused a bit of a stir with the USFS concerning eating disorders. The response can be found on The Skating Lesson FB page here.

Hey, excuse me, Ice Charades, but what does the US Forest Service care about eating disorders in young figure skaters?

Why thanks for asking... You see! That's why they never should have changed from the USFSA. We're always getting those two mixed up.

Curiously, I can't find that response on the USFS page. And I'm not on the Forest Services' page either. I want to see the forest for the trees here, so if someone can find it please let me know. Have they pulled the response? Hmmm.

I think it's a worthy topic for the USFS that's all too common for young skaters. [Hey, Xan, we can do this too!] I think for Tai, as a pair skater, this was an added burden to bare. She and Randy Gardner were/are one of the few elite pair teams that were so close in height. That made for even more pressure to stay thin, on top of all the pressure to win.

So I say three cheers for Tai for speaking up, along with Jennifer Kirk. By doing so, I believe they'll make a difference for younger skaters.

Next up: Nicole Cook

A champion cyclist who announced her retirement today. She did so much more than win races. And she won a lot. She knocked down the barriers against women in that sport. You can read her entire announcement on the UK Guardian here. Wow, just wow.

This is a timely issue because it comes as another famous cyclist is also talking to the press.

If you've followed Ice Charades for a long time, you know I was a big fan of the Tour de France. And I was a big fan during the Lance years. Not only because of Lance, but he was a part of the excitement of it.

It is just so sad for the cyclists to have competed in the era of doping. To dope or not to dope. Anyone wanting to compete at the elite level was confronted with this. Well Nicole is no dope.

So I want to give her the last word on Lance: “When Lance cries on Oprah later this week, and she passes him the tissue, spare a thought for all those genuine people who walked away with no rewards — just shattered dreams. Each one of them is worth a thousand Lances.”