You Run Like A Girl - Edition 2

Good afternoon,

I’m still playing around with the best time and day to send this newsletter. Today it falls on a Sunday, largely due to a technical glitch that left me unable to access this account and a busy travel week on my end.

For new subscribers, hello and welcome. I’m Amita and I’m the creator of You Run Like A Girl, a media brand that gives a voice to women in sport. In this newsletter, my goal is to share the most interesting stories I read, watched or listened to about women’s sports each week.

In this edition:

• ⛹🏽‍♀️ Women’s basketball revolutionized: How Unrivaled will change everything (basketball)

• 🏉 Ilona Maher sprinkles her stardust on England (rugby)

• 🤸🏾‍♀️ Simone Biles Rising (gymnastics)

Ready? Let’s dive in.

Women’s basketball revolutionized: How Unrivaled will change everything

On January 17th, Unrivaled will launch its inaugural season in Miami. Founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart (both are former UConn Huskies, Olympians and current WNBA superstars), the 3 on 3 league was created to give WNBA athletes an option to continue playing in the U.S during the off-season. The league will have six teams consisting of six players each.

Since its announcement, Unrivaled has exceeded expectations, announcing a media partnership with Turner Sports and bringing on big name brands (like Under Armour and Sephora) and investors (including Coco Gauff and Michael Phelps).

The team behind the league is determined to do things differently. Unrivaled salaries will average close to $250,000 (that’s more than double the average WNBA salary) and offer services like childcare, massage therapy and a hair and makeup room to all players.

But Unrivaled isn’t meant to be a competitor to the WNBA. If anything, players could see gains that will only help them during the regular league.

Read the full article here (if that link doesn’t work, try this). Credit: Written by Noa Dalzell for SBNation.

Ilona Maher sprinkles her stardust on England

28 year-old rugby sensation Ilona Maher isn’t having a moment - she is the moment.

Earlier this week, Maher made her debut with the UK-based Bristol Bears women’s rugby team. The Olympic bronze medalist and social media darling was such a hot ticket that the team had to move stadiums to accommodate the surge in interest.

Maher, who boasts over 8 million followers on Instagram and TikTok combined and frequently sports a bold red lip on the playing field, has that rare ability to bring people together, inspiring individuals of all ages and backgrounds.

It looks like her profile is on the rise, at least for the foreseeable future (case in point: a film crew from Reese Witherspoon’s production company is following her journey with the Bears for an upcoming series), but to her credit, Maher never seems to lose sight of what matters most: the game, and the loyal fans who keep showing up.

Read the full article here (if that link doesn’t work, try this.) Credit: Written by Caoimhe O’Neill for The Athletic

Simone Biles Rising

I finally got a chance to watch the Simone Biles documentary on Netflix during the Christmas break. It was one of the best things I watched all year. The four part series follows the acclaimed gymnast as she attempts a comeback at the 2024 Olympics.

There’s been a lot of sports documentaries on streamers lately, but most are predictably vanilla and rarely offer viewers a real glimpse into life as an elite athlete. Director Katie Walsh nailed it, painting Biles as both a once-in-a-lifetime gymnast and a regular human.

To her credit, Biles didn’t shy away from honesty. It was refreshing to hear her takes on the backlash her husband (NFL safety Jonathan Owens) received, her thoughts on the Team USA opening ceremony gear, and what she endured from a mental and physical standpoint after being labelled a quitter following her withdrawal from the 2021 Olympics. This is a moving and intimate portrait of an intelligent and incredibly gifted athlete. Highly recommended.