JFIFC    $ &%# #"(-90(*6+"#2D26;=@@@&0FKE>J9?@=C  =)#)==================================================pK" }!1AQa"q2#BR$3br %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz w!1AQaq"2B #3Rbr $4%&'()*56789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz ?kGHo 1R͸"94]TE(-wSA&TSj[Ix(z`bQ(QԌ!E $!dI g* y#b8UơtV=nj"vт}B;v AUt5DZCҿW! chP1Ӽ f']|2?#Qv䨍89ikL 2ZR1n@/E,rkwJ0]&ƙiKXlb 0  4{]HjG<~UMU%fd~Dqڧ 8*[!abP>wQMΉq Un~&_W"R9iQmi*I&pl d4F:u9W#Җ'W[E`OqZ~ϻ% *+uS_ iDw;f^?!?)E-Nn[$`5>=6j8W ʿ\φg\F5n5]Hkh +Km[*8mFeh OӤ3Z*dKl2Iz2^G3ojGkF&HF%܅ nF;7??ͥʇbѭGVfٯHGI̕IE܅WU R%W/ZviaB&Wus]s2Nk%I6dt5xC2I@wQ\]@^G}oO$#\Y\hb"EoZeI8W{W;ٷ-Cned؛@Tg'5xHk %  )RǟVKCG] L An+nXxD#_Zй;f5nk'Ú3F#2֙'4O+9,=U᫛MIUwlbU<{V'my0Wo>ƯN|=I4ݙ[=oҢm4mCn%Ʋ=@ryڅԖV(woz}T_yUb!|{(k\>>ޣTifJuyv#ÀBg9UP_W9 j¨j G+fj-2R{VomηjȖ< d15zME9QMAdF_b:eBv;c' }H{8zER8W"'uZ>[ۓo#6A_Nkޥ %0MPy#'f DF##ʸ[Z{P^n$}(}#4o ^k+UK?[&R>ZsdvT یTﮉGVb Њ)캚Qݐ=kKOu'ky>ЧҷM3Q+@1jtN{71guC8{ dR!S4$ESo, 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 R