NIL ----- NIL

 The Two Meanings of NIL
   
  Although the word "NIL" has been around since the sixteenth century, it usually was only noticeable every four years-or-so, when the World Cup rolled around. In the last five, however, readers frequently see "NIL", but that is another "NIL". Here is the distinction. 

 1.  "NIL"  - Means Nothing
 The old "NIL" means, nada, no amount or zero and it is the one that shows up often every four years when nothing much happens during football matches. What is really needed is a new word to replace "DIVING" ,  to describe much of the action which is displayed.

 2. "NIL"  - Means A Lot
  The new "NIL" stands for Name - Image - Likeness, and for those things a U.S. college athlete can now earn a large sum of money. This is the real "NIL" that you now see in the news. 
  Actually, you don't even have to be an actual athlete to be given a large sum. The manager (i.e., towel and water guy) of the McNeese State Cowboys basketball team provides an example, in that he apparently received a sum that was at least six figures. Quarterbacks can get millions.

  If you are now intrigued, see the Wikipedia entry for, "Student Athlete Compensation" or "NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) Explained."

The Bonus:
  Those who know about Title IX will wonder if women have benefitted. The answer is "Yes" and the athlete pictured above is Olivia Dunne, now known as "Livvy'. She has her own Wikipedia entry. 
   "On July 2, 2021, the NCAA changed its rule to allow its athletes to earn money from their name, image, and likeness (NIL). Dunne was projected to earn more than any other collegiate athlete due to her large social-media platform, which was a combined five million followers across both Instagram and TikTok at the time of the rule change.  In August, Dunne announced that she signed with WME Sports, becoming their first NIL athlete. A month later, she announced her first exclusive brand partnership with activewear brand Vuori."

Women Running Around

 

   A few days ago, I mentioned the  "Wonder Woman", Camille Herron, who is an ultrarunner.  She holds the world record for the 100 mile run (160km) and she has run 167 miles (270km) in 24 hours. I thought of those numbers when I read this:

"When Kathrine Switzer, a twenty-year-old journalism and English major at Syracuse University, set out to run the Boston Marathon in 1967, women were barred from it. Switzer registered under her initials and showed up anyway, only to be outed by reporters shouting, “It’s a girl! It’s a girl!” The race director tried to eject her physically from the course. Switzer and others later appeared on television to promote female runners, and the seventies jogging craze attracted women, too. President Richard Nixon signed Title IX of the 1972 Education Amendments into law, promising female athletes equal access to facilities and funding in schools. In 1984, the Olympic Games held a women’s marathon for the first time. Today, more than half of all marathon runners are women."

   Apparently in the radical '60s, running for women was a radical endeavour, rather unfeminine and likely to cause damage to the undercarriage. Even if one was  only running  a marathon (26m or 42k). Some things for women have changed. 

Sources:
   The quotation is from a review of this book and a few others: Let's Get Physical: How Women Discovered Exercise and Reshaped the World by Danielle Friedman. The review is by Margaret Talbot, "Muscle Memory: Is Fitness Culture Our Friend," The New Yorker, Mar. 22, 2022, p.69.
   The photo above is from: "Women Are Better Than Men at Marathon Pacing, Says New Research," Kate Carter, The Guardian, Jan. 20, 2015.

The Bonus:
   During "March Madness" it is worth mentioning that now women can even play basketball like men. When I was in high school, the girls could only dribble three times. Now there are 68 teams of women running full tilt in the NCAA tournament. 
   One female basketball player who is not running is Brittney Griner, who was playing professionally in Russia and is now in detention there. See: "Brittney Griner, Star, W.N.B.A. Center, Is Detained in Russia," NYT, Mar. 5, 2022.