• In-Box: Letters to the Editor

  New York Times - Found 1 hour ago ... women?s team.I grew up playing soccer when the United States women?s team won the World Cup in 1999 and Mia Hamm became a household name.

• 1999 Women's World Cup

  USA Today - Found Jul. 2, 2009 Just before the tournament began, Mia Hamm and her teammates had a sense that this event was about to strike a chord.

• Andy Staples: Recruiting 13-year-old Berry smart gamble for Vols

  SI.com - Found Jun. 30, 2009 90s. ? Ava and Grace Garciaparra: Soccer and softball coaches already should have extended offers to Mia Hamm and Nomar Garciaparra's 2... Eric Berry's 13-year-old brother says he's going to Tennessee - USA Today Recruiting 13-year-old Berry smart gamble for Vols - SI.com Eric Berry's brother says he's committed to Vols - Examiner.com Young Berry to follow brother, father to Tennessee - Rivals.com Explore All

• Gatorade Expands Talent Roster

  Reuters - Found Jun. 29, 2009 Garnett, Serena Williams, Usain Bolt, Misty May-Treanor, Kerri Walsh, Candace Parker, Jimmie Johnson, Mia Hamm, Dwyane Wade, Tiger Woods and... Gatorade Expands Talent Roster - Houston Chronicle Gatorade Expands Talent Roster - Washington Business Journal Gatorade Expands Talent Roster - Los Angeles Business Gatorade Expands Talent Roster - Breitbart.com Explore All

• 10 Questions for Candace Parker

  Time - Found Jun. 25, 2009 I was a humongous Mia Hamm fan. I wanted to be a soccer player until I was in the eighth grade. She was my role model. That's what I hope to be.

• UGA gymnast wins athlete of year award

  Atlanta Journal And Constitution - Found Jun. 22, 2009 ... track-and-field?s Jackie Joyner-Kersee (1985), softball?s Lisa Fernandez (1993), soccer?s Mia Hamm (1994) and basketball?s Candace... Gymnastics Star Courtney Kupets Awarded 2009 Honda-Broderick Cup - Reuters Gymnastics Star Courtney Kupets Awarded 2009 Honda-Broderick Cup - Individual.com Gymnastics Star Courtney Kupets Awarded 2009 Honda-Broderick Cup - Forbes.com Explore All

• Sol to Honor Mia Hamm, Joy Fawcett this Sunday

  OurSports Central - Found Jun. 16, 2009 Tuesday, June 16, 2009 - The first-place Los Angeles Sol of Women's Professional Soccer will recognize Mia Hamm and Joy Fawcett, two members...

• Landon Donovan and Mia Hamm Join USA Bid Comittee

  Around The Rings - Found May. 29, 2009 â?? Landon Donovan and Mia Hamm, two of the most decorated players in U.S. National Team history, today accepted invitations to join the Board ...

• 10 years ago today, Phish celebrates the 4th of July for the first ...

  Examiner.com - Found 2 hours ago ^^With Pete Carini; lyrics mention Mia Hamm (Trey was wearing a Mia Hamm jersey). ^^^Chorus-only reprise;

• Olathe East graduate earns national award

  KansasCity.com - Found 16 hours ago Its funny, because I watched all my role models when I was growing up, people like Mia Hamm and Andy Roddick, do the got milk? ads, Marden said.

Mia Hamm

Personal information
Full name	Mariel Margaret Hamm
Date of birth	March 17, 1972 (1972-03-17) (age 37)
Place of birth	Selma, Alabama, United States
Height	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)
Playing position	Forward
Senior career1
Years	Club	Apps (Gls)2
1989–1993	North Carolina Tar Heels	00? (103)
2001–2003	Washington Freedom	049 0(25)
National team3
1987–2004	United States	275 (158)
Honours Competitor for  United States Women's Football (soccer) Gold Atlanta 1996 National team Silver Sydney 2000 National team Gold Athens 2004 National team
1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of June 28, 2007. 2 Appearances (Goals) 3 National team caps and goals correct as of June 28, 2007.

Mia Garciaparra (née Hamm) (born Mariel Margaret Hamm on March 17, 1972 in Selma, Alabama) is a retired American soccer player. Playing for many years as a forward for the United States women's national soccer team, she scored more international goals in her career than any other player, male or female, in the history of soccer(158).

Hamm is one of the most famous athletes in the world, an iconic symbol of women's sports, and an inspiration and role model to a generation of sports-minded girls. As part of the first generation of women to grow up with gender equality rights after Title IX passed, she received the college scholarships, endorsements and training opportunities necessary to become a top athlete. She was named the women's FIFA World Player of the Year the first two times that award was given (in 2001 and 2002), and is listed as one of FIFA's 125 best living players (as chosen by Pelé). Washington Post columnist Michael Wilbon called Hamm, "Perhaps the most important athlete of the last 15 years."¹

She retired from the sport in 2004, when she played her last game in the 2004 Fan Celebration Tour to commemorate the US's Women's National team's victory in the 2004 Olympics. In 2007, her first year of eligibility, she was selected for induction into the National Soccer Hall of Fame by having 137 votes of the 141 ballots cast. Women's Professional Soccer, a professional soccer league that launched in 2009, features Hamm's silhouette in its logo.²

Hamm was inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame on March 11, 2008.³

She is the author of Go For the Goal: A Champion's Guide to Winning in Soccer and Life (Harper Collins, 1999). She appeared in the HBO documentary Dare to Dream: The Story of the U.S. Women's Soccer Team.

Early years

Mia was born with a club foot, and had to wear cast to correct it.^{citation needed} Hamm spent her childhood on Air Force bases with her parents Bill and Stephanie Hamm and her five siblings. ⁴ She played organized sports from a very young age, and at age 15 she joined the U.S. women's national team, becoming the youngest ever to play for them.⁵ She attended Lake Braddock Secondary School for one year, when she helped the Lake Braddock Soccer team win the 1989 state championships.⁶

She attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she helped the Tar Heels to four NCAA women's championships in five years (she sat out the season of 1991 to concentrate on the 1991 FIFA Women's World Cup in China). North Carolina only lost one game in ninety five she played.⁷ She was an All-American and Atlantic Coast Conference player of the year for her last three years. She also won ACC Female Athlete of the Year in 1993 and 1994. She also played for the Sweetwater Red Devils in National City, California and is the best female kicker.

Women's national team

In 1991, when the women's national team won the FIFA Women's World Cup for the first time, Hamm became the youngest American woman to win a World Cup championship at the age 19.

She was also a member of the American National college team that played in the 1993 Summer Universiade and lost to China, obtaining the silver medal. She was the leading scorer with six goals. She graduated from college with the all-time records for her conference in goals with 103, assists with 72, and total points with 278.

On May 22, 1999 Hamm broke the all-time international goal record with her 158th goal in a game against Brazil in Orlando, Florida.

In 1999, Nike named the largest building on their corporate campus after Hamm, and that same year she, and the rest of the women on the national team became world champions again by winning the FIFA Women's World Cup. The final match surpassed the Atlanta Olympic final as the most-attended women's sports event, with over 90,000 filling the Rose Bowl.

Also in 1997, Hamm began the Mia Hamm Foundation, dedicated to help with bone marrow research and to help women's sports programs progress. She was inspired to create her foundation by her adoptive brother and original athletic inspiration, Garrett. She had a friendly game the next day and all the members of her team wore a black armband in memory of her brother.

On May 14, 2004, she announced her retirement effective after the 2004 Athens Olympics, expressing an interest in starting a family with her husband, Nomar Garciaparra.⁸⁹

In March 2004, Hamm and former U.S. teammate Michelle Akers were the only two women, and the only two Americans, named to the FIFA 100, a list of the 125 greatest living soccer players selected by Pelé and commissioned by FIFA for that organization's 100th anniversary.

In a friendly game against Australia on July 21, 2004, Hamm scored her 151st international goal; she has long held the record in that category for any player, male or female. This match also marked her 259th international appearance; only her teammate Kristine Lilly has played in more internationals.

She helped lead Team USA to a gold medal at the 2004 Olympics and was also chosen by her fellow U.S. Olympians to carry the American flag at the Athens Closing Ceremonies. After the Olympics, Hamm and her teammates went on a "farewell tour" of the United States, which finished on December 8, 2004 against Mexico at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California. In the game, which the U.S. won 5-0, Hamm assisted on two of the goals. Hamm is one of three longtime national team members who announced their retirement from international play at the end of the tour; the others are longtime captain Julie Foudy and Joy Fawcett (Fawcett did not play due to back surgery after the Olympics). Hamm retired with 158 international goals at age 32.

Personal life

Hamm was first married on December 17, 1994 to her college sweetheart Christian Corry, a U.S. Marine Corps pilot, but they divorced in 2001.

Hamm married then-Boston Red Sox shortstop, Nomar Garciaparra on November 22, 2003 in Goleta, California in a private ceremony, attended by three hundred guests. On March 27, 2007 Hamm gave birth to twin girls, Grace Isabella and Ava Caroline. Though born five weeks early, each girl weighed over 5 pounds (2.3 kg) at birth.¹⁰ Twins run in both Hamm and Garciaparra's families.¹¹

Championships

References

External links

• Mia Hamm's U.S. Olympic Team bio, with photos, video
• Mia Hamm Foundation
• Mia Hamm at the Internet Movie Database
• Works by or about Mia Hamm in libraries (WorldCat catalog)

v â€¢ d â€¢ e United States squad – 1991 FIFA Women's World Cup Champions (1st Title) 1 Scurry â€¢ 2 Heinrichs (c.) â€¢ 3 Higgins â€¢ 4 Werden â€¢ 5 Henry â€¢ 6 Chastain â€¢ 7 Bates â€¢ 8 Hamilton â€¢ 9 Hamm â€¢ 10 Akers â€¢ 11 Foudy â€¢ 12 Jennings â€¢ 13 Lilly â€¢ 14 Biefield â€¢ 15 Gebauer â€¢ 16 Belkin â€¢ 17 Allman â€¢ 18 Maslin-Kammerdeiner â€¢ Coach: Dorrance

v â€¢ d â€¢ e United States squad – 1995 FIFA Women's World Cup Third Place 1 Scurry â€¢ 2 Staples â€¢ 3 Manthei â€¢ 4 Overbeck â€¢ 5 Roberts â€¢ 6 Keller â€¢ 7 Rafanelli â€¢ 8 Hamilton â€¢ 9 Hamm â€¢ 10 Akers â€¢ 11 Foudy â€¢ 12 Jennings â€¢ 13 Lilly â€¢ 14 Fawcett â€¢ 15 Venturini â€¢ 16 Milbrett â€¢ 17 Lalor â€¢ 18 Webber â€¢ 19 Cromwell â€¢ Coach: DiCicco

v â€¢ d â€¢ e United States squad – 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup Champions (2nd Title) 1 Scurry â€¢ 2 Fair â€¢ 3 Pearce â€¢ 4 Overbeck â€¢ 5 Roberts â€¢ 6 Chastain â€¢ 7 Whalen â€¢ 8 MacMillan â€¢ 9 Hamm â€¢ 10 Akers â€¢ 11 Foudy â€¢ 12 Parlow â€¢ 13 Lilly â€¢ 14 Fawcett â€¢ 15 Venturini â€¢ 16 Milbrett â€¢ 17 Fotopoulos â€¢ 18 Webber â€¢ 19 Ducar â€¢ 20 Sobrero â€¢ Coach: DiCicco

v â€¢ d â€¢ e United States squad – 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup Third Place 1 Scurry â€¢ 2 Bivens â€¢ 3 Pearce â€¢ 4 Reddick â€¢ 5 Roberts â€¢ 6 Chastain â€¢ 7 Boxx â€¢ 8 MacMillan â€¢ 9 Hamm â€¢ 10 Wagner â€¢ 11 Foudy â€¢ 12 Parlow â€¢ 13 Lilly â€¢ 14 Fawcett â€¢ 15 Sobrero â€¢ 16 Milbrett â€¢ 17 Slaton â€¢ 18 Mullinix â€¢ 19 Hucles â€¢ 20 Wambach â€¢ Coach: Heinrichs