![]() ![]() Until I can head the ball with the authority of Tisha Venturini, pass with the touch and imagination of Kristine Lilly, shoot with the thunder of Michelle Akers, and command a team with the grit of Carla Overbeck and the wit of Julie Foudy, I’ll keep striving to become the complete player. When I see their amazing skills and talents, I have no doubt that I still have a lot of work to do. ![]() Now, with the National Team, I’m training and playing with some of the best players in the world every day. ![]() But each day I attempted to play up to their level and earn their respect, and I was improving faster than I had ever dreamed possible. ![]() Back then I wasn’t sure I fit in after all, I was shy and a bit intimidated by players I had idolized. Was I that good? No, but early on coaches detected a competitive fire in me and fed it by continually pitting me against superior opponents. Seven years later I found myself playing for the number-one college team in America after becoming the youngest player ever to suit up for the U.S. At ten, I joined an eleven-year-old-boys’ team and, eventually, led them in scoring. When I was six, my big brother, Garrett, ran circles around me. And because of that, someday I just might be.Īll my life I’ve been playing up, meaning I’ve challenged myself by competing with players older, bigger, more skillful, more experienced-in short, better than me. Many people say I’m the best women’s soccer player in the world. My name is Mariel Margaret Hamm, but everyone calls me Mia. The Game Within the Game ONE No Me in Mia ![]()
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