Julie Foudy

Football player infobox
playername = Julie Foudy


fullname = Julie Maurine Foudy
nickname =
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1971|01|23
cityofbirth = San Diego, California
countryofbirth = United States
height =
years =
clubs = San Diego Spirit
currentclub =
clubnumber =
position = midfielder
youthyears =
youthclubs =
caps(goals) = 173
nationalyears = 1987-2004
nationalteam = United States
nationalcaps(goals) = 271 (45)
pcupdate =
ntupdate =
MedalTop

Julie Maurine Foudy (born 23 January 1971 in San Diego, California) was a midfielder for the United States women's national soccer team from 1987 through 2004, finishing with a remarkable 271 caps. She served as the team's co-captain from 1991-2000 and the Captain from 2000 through her retirement in 2004.

Football career

Foudy played in 4 Women's World Cups, winning two FIFA World Championships -- in 1991 and 1999. She also played in 3 Summer Olympic Games, winning an Olympic Gold Medal in 1996, Silver in 2000, and Gold again in 2004. Her retirement after the 2004 Olympic Games, alongside fellow soccer legends Mia Hamm and Joy Fawcett (and the unanticipated retirement of Brandi Chastain following the change of USWNT coaches), marked the end of what the media labeled the "golden era" of women's soccer. [http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=soccer&id=1940064. Last visited 6/8/2006.] Foudy also held the captain's position for her WUSA team, the San Diego Spirit. The WUSA suspended operations in September of 2003; Foudy is the official player's representative to the ongoing efforts to resurrect the league. She has been selected for induction into the National Soccer Hall of Fame for the class of 2007 alongside former teammate Mia Hamm. Foudy and Hamm's induction is the first all-female class of the U.S. National Soccer Hall of Fame.

ports broadcaster

Foudy has served as an in-studio analyst for ABC, ESPN and ESPN2's coverage of the 2006 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2008, and has provided on-air commentary and analysis during United States Women's National Team matches since then. She has also coanchored ABC and ESPN telecasts of the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup and the 2007 season of Major League Soccer, including the MLS Cup. She appeared as a pundit for the ESPN coverage of the UEFA Euro 2008 championship finals, together with Andy Gray and Tommy Smyth. Foudy is also a reporter for ESPN's investigative program, "Outside the Lines". She served as a sportsdesk reporter for NBC Sports coverage of the 2008 Summer Olympics. [ [http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/mediumwell/blog/2008/07/your_nbc_olympics_lineup.html Medium Well: Your NBC Olympics lineup - A blog on sports media, news and networks - baltimoresun.com ] ]

Personal and political activism

Foudy graduated from Stanford University in 1994. She was accepted into Stanford Medical School in 1996, deferred for two years, and ultimately decided not to pursue a career in Medicine.

Foudy is an advocate for women's rights and children's rights. She served as the President of the Women's Sports Foundation. Additionally, Foudy received the FIFA Fair Play Award for her well documented trip abroad to examine the working conditions of her then-sponsor, Reebok's factories.

In 2002, she was named by United States Secretary of Education Rod Paige to the Commission on Opportunity in Athletics, a panel charged with reviewing the effects and implementation of the landmark 1972 Title IX legislation. Foudy took strong exception to the commission's final report; ultimately, though, her advocacy on the issue and the sharply-worded dissenting Minority Report by Foudy and fellow commissioner Donna de Varona are generally conceded to have halted the implementation of the commission's recommendations.

In 2006, Julie Foudy and her husband Ian Sawyers launched The Julie Foudy Sports Leadership Academy. The week-long Academy is for girls ages 12-18 and weaves together sports and leadership. The Academy has received national and international attention for creating leaders both on and off the field.

Foudy gave birth to her first child, a daughter named Isabel Ann, on 1 January 2007.

She appeared in the HBO documentary "."

Notes

External links

* [http://www.juliefoudysoccercamps.com Julie Foudy Soccer Camps Official site]
* [http://www.juliefoudyleadership.com Julie Foudy Sports Leadership Academy Official site]
* [http://www.usolympicteam.com/26_1209.htm Julie Foudy's U.S. Olympic Team bio]
* [http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2003-02-24-titleix-foudy-letter_x.htm Text of Julie Foudy's letter to Title IX Commission]