Mia Hamm.

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Mia Hamm.
Mia Hamm, born in 1972, American soccer player, one of the greatest female players in the history of the sport. Hamm is the all-time leading scorer in international
soccer--women's or men's--with 158 goals.
Mariel Margaret Hamm was born in Selma, Alabama. Her father served in the military, and Hamm's family moved frequently as she was growing up. When Hamm was in
her early teens, her soccer skills attracted the attention of United States national team coaches. At age 15 she became the youngest player ever to win a spot on the
national squad. While remaining a member of the national team, Hamm attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. There she was a three-time AllAmerican and helped lead the Tar Heels to four consecutive national championships (1990-1993).
In 1991 Hamm and the U.S. team played in the first-ever Women's World Cup, which took place in China. Hamm, the youngest member of the team at 19, started five
of six games and scored two goals as the United States won the title. In the 1995 World Cup Hamm scored two goals to help the American team finish third. She was
also a key member of the team during its gold-medal performance at the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia.
The 1999 Women's World Cup tournament was held in the United States, and the U.S. team was considered one of the favorites to win. The championship game
between the United States and China was decided by penalty kicks after a scoreless tie during regulation play and overtime. Hamm converted her shot to help the
United States triumph. The game was played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, in front of more than 90,000 people--the largest crowd ever to attend a women's
sporting event up to that time.
After the World Cup triumph, Hamm was one of the key players who signed on with a new women's professional league. The Women's United Soccer Association
(WUSA) began play in 2001 with teams in eight U.S. cities. Hamm was assigned to the Washington (D.C.) Freedom. After struggling with injuries in 2002 she came back
to tie for the league scoring title in 2003 and led her team to the championship. After the 2003 season the league announced it would shut down because of financial
losses.
Internationally, Hamm was named the FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) World Player of the Year, the sport's top individual award, in both 2001
and 2002. In the 2003 Women's World Cup, Hamm scored two goals for the U.S. squad and was named to the all-tournament team, but the United States lost to
Germany in the semifinals and took third place.
At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, Hamm helped the U.S. team to a gold medal for the second time. She was then selected to carry the American flag
during the closing ceremonies of the Games, the first soccer player chosen for that honor. Hamm retired from the national team at the end of 2004. Over her 17-year
career she scored a record 158 goals in international play.
Hamm's great success led her to become an ambassador for women's soccer, and she has appeared in a number of high-visibility commercials and product
endorsements. In 1999 she announced the creation of the Mia Hamm Foundation. The foundation supports sports programs for young women and raises funds to fight
bone marrow disease, which took the life of her older brother, Garrett, in 1997.

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