• With a dream and determination Rebecca Lobo achieved her goal of playing professional basketball. - 09/01/2011

    Rebecca Lobo, age 10. With two defenders covering her every move, Rebecca Lobo calls for the ball. Twelve feet from the basket she grabs the pass, dribbles once, and shoots. Swish! She drops in two more points for the New York Liberty. Catch, dribble, shoot. Rebecca Lobo has practiced this thousands...

  • Reaching out to a friend can be hard. - 09/01/2011

    “I’m cooked! Can’t wait to hit the water!” Kehau exclaimed, wiping her sticky forehead and brushing back her thick black hair. She grinned in anticipation of that deliciously cool first plunge. “Yeah, and hear Mrs. Lee say, ‘All right, boys and girls, four laps. Don’t hold back. Breathe properly,...

  • NBA all-stars Grant Hill and Kevin Johnson discuss ways for players to improve their performance. - 09/01/2011

    NBA all-stars Grant Hill and Kevin Johnson offer advice for improving your game. There are few sure things in professional basketball. But you can bank on the fact that Grant Hill and Kevin Johnson will be among their teams’ leaders in scoring, assists, hustle, and hard work. Both Hill and Johnson...

  • Beanpole gets basketball tips and friendship from a girl named Ning. - 09/01/2011

    “Screen!” Shannon yelled to Ning. “Switch!” The player Shannon was guarding had positioned herself to block Ning from Teri. Teri would be wide open unless Shannon and Ning switched players. Shannon crouched and moved toward Teri. As a smirk spread over Teri’s face, Shannon regretted the switch....

  • Danny is talented at the high jump, just as his dad was. - 09/01/2011

    Mum says Dad used to be good at high jump, just like me. The best part is when I get over, and a part of me had been scared I wouldn’t make it, and I had to shut that bit up. I had to say, Danny, just do it, and start that run up, feel the run change into upwards action—over!—and the bar rattling...

  • A girl learns how great her older brother is as she tries to conquer the high dive - 09/01/2011

    “Keep an eye on this,” said my older brother, Paul, handing me his watch. “What for?” I asked, absentmindedly slipping the watch onto my wrist. “I’m going to practice my diving.” “Off the high dive?” I asked. “Sure,” said Paul, grinning. “Want to join me?” I didn’t answer. Paul knew I was terrified...

  • Denny's tired from running her race. But the relay team needs her. - 09/01/2011

    “Go, Denny, go!” my teammates chanted. I ignored them. I had just entered the backstretch. Two runners were ahead of me, but I was gaining. The cheering from the bleachers grew louder as we reached the final turn. I found myself in the lead. I knew better than to look back at the runners behind...

  • Will Josh ever learn to spot Lefty's curve ball? - 09/01/2011

    The big left-hander on the mound fired the baseball home. “Hey!” Josh had only a fraction of a second to jerk his head out of the path of the speeding baseball. He flopped onto his back with a thud, the air kicking out from his lungs on impact. “Strike one!” the umpire yelled. The Mudcat catcher...

  • What will it take for Mark to break the "jinx" on hole number 7? - 09/01/2011

    “You can do it, Mark.” I gripped my five iron and swung. The ball soared through the air and dropped right into the pond on hole number 7. Plop. “I’m jinxed, Dad. I can never keep the ball out of that water.” “There’s no such thing as a jinx,” Dad said. Easy for him to say. His ball was five feet...

  • When playing sports, it's important to relax and stay focused. (And have fun!) - 09/01/2011

    Place-kicker Gary Anderson’s tips for performing at your best. Gary Anderson is one of the most successful kickers in NFL history. The game is nearly over—only two minutes remain. Players from both football teams line up on either side of the thirty-yard line. Ten yards away, place-kicker Gary...

  • Jen knows what she needs to help her team win the swimming relay. - 09/01/2011

    Jen climbed out of the pool and adjusted the straps of her racing suit. In a few minutes, the city’s junior swim league championships would begin. Jen and her teammates, Dana, Amy and Shanti, had qualified to compete in the two-hundred-meter medley relay. From across the pool, Jen met Amy’s glare....

  • It takes patience to catch a stealer like Willie Cooper. - 09/01/2011

    Willie wasn’t all bad; he just liked to steal. He’d steal every chance he’d get. He got away with it nearly every time, too. But I stopped him. When I first saw Willie Cooper steal second base, I couldn’t believe how fast he was. Most times he’d be sliding into second before the catcher even knew...

  • Learn about the game of marbles; where it came from and how it's played. - 09/01/2011

    Ben Nelson won the boys’ division of the 1998 National Marbles Tournament. It’s held each year in Wildwood, New Jersey.* (photo by Danny Drake/The Press of Atlantic City) Do you want to have fun? Find some mibs, grab a taw, and start shooting. These words may sound odd, but you probably know the...

  • Hoops is a natural at basketball . . . but what about his education? - 09/01/2011

    Henry Oliver Ogden Patrick Sullivan was born the day of the National Basketball Association All-Star game. In honor of the occasion, he received a blue sweater, a fuzzy blanket, a teddy bear, a silver rattle, three IT’S A BOY! balloons, and a championship basketball. His parents were overjoyed with...

  • To Mia Hamm, scoring goals isn’t as important as being a valuable member of the team. - 09/01/2011

    Mia Hamm may be the best soccer player in the world. She has scored more goals than anyone else. But it doesn’t matter to her how many times she scores, as long as her team is successful. “I want to do whatever I can to help the team win,” she says. “If that means working hard on defense and not...

  • Blindness hasn't prevented record-breaking swimmer Kate Pavlacka from attaining her goals. - 09/01/2011

    Kate Pavlacka Blindness hasn't dimmed the spirit of this record-breaking swimmer. “Swimmers, step up.” Goggles clamped over her eyes, nineteen-year-old Kate Pavlacka stepped onto the starting block. She was about to race against the world’s fastest competitors at the 2000 Paralympic Games in...

  • Top athletes offer advice on making the most of a loss. - 09/01/2011

    How do top athletes handle defeat and disappointment? In many cases, an athlete can turn to his or her teammates for support and encouragement. But in some sports, the performer competes as an individual. Winning or losing depends solely on the athlete’s own skill and effort. I asked several top...

  • It's Mara's first dogsled race. Holly hopes Dad will understand if her sister doesn't win. - 09/01/2011

    “You afraid?” Holly signed, opening her fists across her chest. Mara shook her head no and signed a large “excited.” The sisters stopped talking then because their hands were busy with sled and dog. Popo was tugging fiercely against the chain that held him in place by the pickup truck. When Daddy...

  • Marc's clubs are the talk of the tee. What makes them so special? - 09/01/2011

    “Pitch-and-Putt Tournament Saturday,” Marc read on Peggy Jo’s Mini Golf bulletin board. “Winner receives certificate for complete set of clubs.” “Wow,” he whispered hopefully. “There’s even a 10-and-under age group!” The whip of a club and the clok! of a solid strike made Marc look at the driving...

  • Danny works hard to improve his high jump. - 09/01/2011

    “Stee-rike one!” the umpire howled. “Oh great,” I thought. “It’s bad enough that I’m facing my big brother, the best pitcher in the league. Now the umpire is giving him the outside corner, too.” I stepped out of the batter’s box to think. I looked over at my brother, Mark, who was toeing the rubber...