I can remember back in elementary school when it was considered odd for girls to participate in sports. For those who dared to cross the chalky lines, the term, "tomboy" was often used to describe them. Not only that, but a girl's sexiness status dropped well below 5 (on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being a total hottie) if she engaged in sporting activities.

But these days, young women have not only increased their gaming abilities, but have retained their curves and overall beauty during the process. Have you seen a WNBA game lately? You could possibly choose 4 or 5 sistas, right off of the court, and use them to replace the honeys in a Nelly video. Not that a video-girl should be the beauty standard, but there are a number of WNBA players who aren't doing so bad in the looks department.

Many of the women in the WNBA, on the professional tennis circuit, or even in the now defunct, WUSA, do not fit the tradtional look and role of, 'female athlete'. I use the term, "traditional", because the imagery conjured up is always of a big, burly, board-shaped, woman with no distinguishing body features and very little sex appeal. This is nowhere near the truth in women's sports in 2005. These women use the latest and greatest health/beauty products; they wear the most stylish clothes; and they take care of their bodies, inside and out, better than most men. If you've ever heard the term, "beauty and brains", it definitely fits here. Add some sexy muscle and a huge paycheck, and you have yourself today's female athlete.

While most of the world seems to cautiously gawk at tennis star Serena Williams' latest fashion statements, the brothas are surely loving every minute of it. It is the styles and shapes of women like Serena Williams, and Tai Dillard of the WNBA's, San Antonio Silver Stars, that cause men to spend hours watching what used to be considered, "boring" women's sporting activity on television. This has always been evident with the superstars of track and field. Those sistas are known for their bodacious figures, and compete against the world's best athletes.

Yet, while I've focused on the hot bods of female professional athletes, we cannot forget about the combination of beauty, brains, and athleticism they possess, and the effort it takes to maintain it all. Most women will tell you that it's challenging enough simply to take care of ones physical beauty...(i.e. manicures, pedicures, hairstyles, etc.)... and adding a detailed workout regimen to that, can create a hectic lifestyle for many sistas.

Some women may rebuke these statements as narrow-minded, sexist, or even, arrogant, since men can't seem to look past a woman's beauty.... even if she's slamming a tennis ball at 100 mph. But the fact remains, female athletes still take great pride in their physical appearances and enjoy getting attention as much as other women.

Diversity is always a good thing. Especially when it involves balancing beauty and athletics.

These sistas are doing just that and the brothas really don't mind at all.

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