JFIFC    $ &%# #"(-90(*6+"#2D26;=@@@&0FKE>J9?@=C  =)#)==================================================f" }!1AQa"q2#BR$3br %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz w!1AQaq"2B #3Rbr $4%&'()*56789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz ?x '4)@ F8c4IIR i!Wԭt> 67ĄѲnP#qKc̵eQ'(n18r:Wya]]x2vY2cЯbF\ һ'Nc2 58vcÿyǺ8nV; q/i{4 yFN=:;&7}=*9)89)Xe2J\J(xfQH.c& ZO/;@Rtw?QlG^j}nJi=B$;cmO5Һ:hPՒxNՂ W6<6|#8]_h8cT@W3]brF&qrbEџ$>'MY71Z0bX֨x,pOMz5+{-'Uz~iw+E]\y]u̩ڥR'};t ;b`$~U::u4EӫC5Yƭ{)$ojb\;AːbNia$nܴGww64G ɸ"Zw~uy,P[R9w SZwGj0]ä\"m~S &\}Nݔ<'z/sys$/s7b:@޲+$9,@CWܨ'e&t,67%s׃ֲ&G.eKAH؇P2y:$8AJ5˽=Y;~4ZSrw,o$Ys1k Dk(3>ߚ%~9_5V0T9h5/Ȣ?FHOכ.fvG(!L9 2sڛ#Iq qǶ+13$G#:QXڥouAiXdZt5g\\δa N2yYwrw6{Wt%HNATh7^FH2I שb>b_1NyV!{ʭ'x"-L!'b]nצEy%${uCכYua3䛘qUߣt*>(¨g_/6KM-k [w|zgp;~Z-j27sz K22%pY5r;޾[iHŸ8kx4~H֭)ͧqEp\Se勱fcď2WqQN;3f&$n8jCv6*; ;bQWoj&bw0}6.n^=cjٴFx)ԃ*-0Z<_=զM~urq|@Ȓf12½,$\((㯥Fc7<"y wQV;4xUr9cҊ*&"Э~).y9gX6y4QOKi`!.#8+^yw" torch from a series of her Australian countrywomen (who had all been Olympic athletes) and took center stage against a backdrop of shimmering water and flame. The moment was a deliberate celebration of the female athlete, and with more women participating and breaking records than ever before, that celebratory feeling carried through the entire Games.<br>Did Title IX have any Olympic influence? Just ask Dot Richardson, who with her teammates won gold in the first-ever women's Olympic softball competition at the 1996 Games, and gold again at the 2000 Games. When she was 10, Dot's exceptional playing was noticed by a Little League coach, who asked if she wanted to be on his team. Sure she did! But the coach said they'd have to cut her hair short and they'd call her "Bob." Later, after Title IX was in place, Dot went on to become a four-time All-American in college and was named NCAA player of the decade for the 1980s. Do you think that would have happened without Title IX?<br>And just ask Cheryl Miller, who won an Olympic gold in 1984 for women's basketball. "Without Title IX, I'd be nowhere," she admits. In 1972, there were only 132,299 girls playing basketball in high school. Twenty years later that figure had more than tripled. Now women's basketball is receiving the attention it deserves, especially after the thrilling wins by the U.S. team in the 1996 and 2000 Games, and the resulting development of women's professional basketball.<br>Although there are still areas of inequity, the increase in public support of girls' and women's sports has had innumerable positive effects. The media is giving female athletic stars equal attention, and young girls at last have as many role models as boys have. Sports that were once seen as essentially men's territory - lacrosse, wrestling, rugby and ice hockey - are increasingly attracting women participants. After a World Cup championship and a gold medal at the 1996 Olympics (and a silver in 2000), U.S. women's soccer is now rocking the athletic world with professional teams and generating incredible excitement among spectators and future players.<br><br>The Way It Was<br><b