In my short career as a sportswriter covering the Badgers, I’ve done some pretty amazing things that, to be honest, I’ve seriously taken for granted.
As a junior I’ve already covered a national championship team – and spoke with a few Olympians who also called that team home. In the last few months alone I went on a whirlwind adventure to Indianapolis to cover the drama that was the inaugural Big Ten Championship and then, a few weeks later, I made the 30-plus hour drive across the American West to cover the Granddaddy of Them All.
A few weeks away from my 21st birthday, I can’t deny that I’ve been given some insanely spectacular opportunities, but it wasn’t until I was presented with another opportunity of the same caliber that I realized that these chances I’ve already been given are a dream come true.
Last week, I had the chance to sit down with Christine Brennan and speak one-on-one at my leisure. Brennan is currently a sports columnist for USA Today and has a show on NPR, on top of being a commentator for ABC News, ESPN and Fox Sports Radio. She has covered the Olympic games since 1984 and has published four books, several of which are best sellers.
Brennan has been around the business for some time and holds a few landmarks to her name. She was the first female sports reporter hired by the Miami Herald and not too much later after that, she was the first female to cover the Washington Redskins.
At the time, Brennan didn’t think anything of these notable opportunities. She was simply doing her job.
“I didn’t really think of how momentous it was,” Brennan said. “I just did it. … I did not take myself too seriously. … I really try to keep a healthy perspective. Covering the Redskins, for me it was like ‘OK, well, this is what I’ve been assigned to do. I want to do it.'”
Despite being one of the leaders in her field, growing up, Brennan didn’t know this career was even a possibility.
“I didn’t know that women did this. … I was just a total geek about sports and media,” she said. “I never read a woman’s sports byline. Never saw one, all through high school.”
Growing up in the ’60s and ’70s, Brennan was a rare girl who loved sports with a passion. Unfortunately, women’s sports weren’t nearly as respected at the time – which says a lot considering the popularity women’s sports lack in comparison to men’s sports. As a result of that disrespect, Brennan grew up in a time where women’s sports had to fend for themselves.
Enter Title IX.
Now 40 years old, Title IX has provided girls across the country unprecedented opportunities to play sports. Brennan spoke about how appreciative she is of the fact that even while I was growing up, I never questioned the chances I had to even play sports. The very idea that I personally was able to play basketball for most of my childhood until I decided to quit was something that didn’t exist only a spare few decades ago.
Brennan considers it a success that at Wisconsin, we as Badgers have as many women’s sports as we do and successful women’s sports – specifically the likes of women’s hockey.
While Title IX certainly has its drawbacks – such as the loss of UW’s baseball team, which Brennan acknowledged – the overall value women’s sports brings to a university outweighs those inconveniences.
“The value of women’s sports – teamwork; incredibly great, nice student athletes who are going to get their degree on time, who are not going to embarrass the school – there are some very valuable things,” Brennan said.
But when it comes to anything – sports, writing, any dreams – Brennan just wants people to have the same experience she has had, which is simply the joy of doing what she loves.
“Follow your heart and follow your passion,” Brennan said. “This doesn’t just happen. For me, I feel so fortunate. To say the word ‘dream job’ is not even quite right because I don’t even think of this as a job. If I use the word job or work, it’s kind of a mistake because I don’t consider this that. This is like dancing through life, I get to do what I love to do and get paid … it’s a wonderful life, it’s a wonderful career and it’s exactly what I want to do with my life.
“But I don’t want to sound goofy about it because I’ve worked very hard for this.”
Kelly is a junior majoring in journalism. Taken any great life experiences for granted lately? Share your story by emailing her at [email protected] or tweet @kellymerickson.
