JFIFC    $ &%# #"(-90(*6+"#2D26;=@@@&0FKE>J9?@=C  =)#)==================================================dK" }!1AQa"q2#BR$3br %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz w!1AQaq"2B #3Rbr $4%&'()*56789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz ?o vȨh {i[HUGA}2sLc]E!LmY8l_2`pPI(02OA#Iy7$؂sb,'q@9]E1[cr$ zc,hYڸޝkFf$dOܤ^)8/Cм9df3Zw_%goA@> /sp۟tW|[ }a%$+ʳֱ$nW2M7,OUg`cf'V$&G սFB%Yܳg,P}*žCe%:|'eoƩYhWW9wfY@)ZQ폓Ǿ+4 \YE4Vl,Lg_ku H#y* Ց疺lv̬d>VS3ZRΏ$r2G4&)Gy da]dl⑹x*0M9+u+CUh VaXɠJD2pH85CZ4Kiv3džoj7I,  \s5FgiLo;)}ڛg,K%ޡ"QQ}j5Fd w>\K X#`嶅r,׮ qHɉCsAumJl"e@bojXj aw91FXKSA汼[]Mi:92qQ}&Ws\w5'٤oxqu.ۘ8fŽKUR6g2n$s\56t֮xk} 9MΡpq=kЌ"+rF`8"5F}_v$]6pyt/ M4i=0By~Suvp5mq by?(JDSхMaK,̮8 iI9h!'Ԋ[{/қZ:jR!p|4[6:sQUsO GZ]lzƕY lV5 N(ql)=k$m4knr0G'_SRwf&64?VYln]U3&k*{RMѮw42?CHʲ8r}Ӽ].#5(Gڎ.3$=ՋG"͑&V3wRڵtB;>.miLsXF/̩OC1 r9<Tiq&一aeҪMuͶFz}7F9X*դ3<Ȱ& A8)1ސcһ=nǫx{MUHf ܊, A1A7ky0~do}k%մ{|t);m^bWIt5:Zϲ!V* ׹?|VGL8*KPw{t+O( ]ڴ& $ zNr?:坦eӭirU+RjZI"ݚgO+enʚKK˹ mT9-Zp5Ji%)&2^ yE .0]J \Pc.縖N}K^Qn IYrkä-N+| "`qo|G q:-Ӗ;wZ(׿;Q}4)g$+Y=phtIRH>Ҽ zGc{Ǐ_md:&6!QbYm',X*6yM# WMs-桡AjmHN3~ D4ˌU-49jr7t>>j*RK95J#5R[":-kPp(tĠ-SJ3E$y֣ߎ( uZ#HNG>QE磉AcZvQ@e the feminists yet result in relatively little impact on the status quo.<br>So, on June 23, 1972, with little controversy, President Richard Nixon signed into law the Educational Amendment Title IX, which contained a section prohibiting discrimination against girls and women in federally funded education, including sports. Like a snowball on a downhill run, what seemed insignificant at the beginning created an avalanche that has completely changed the status of women in sports today.<br>If those old codgers are still alive, I bet they're not grinning now.<br><br>The Sydney Games<br><br>Let's return to the present. The recent Sydney Olympics were a shining example of the dramatic changes made possible by Title IX. The opening ceremonies set the mood when Cathy Freeman was handed the 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. W