| Category | Mia Hamm | Mark McGwire | Winner |
| Record-breaking Achievement |
108 international goals breaking Elisabetta Vignotto's
record of 107 |
62 domestic league baseball home runs breaking Roger Maris'
record of 61 |
Hamm |
| Quote after breaking record |
"Get a life, Rob." (To Rob Stone after he asked about the
record.) |
"I'm like in awe of myself right now." |
Hamm |
| Commercial Endorsements |
Nike, Gatorade, Edy's Ice Cream, etc. |
McDonald's, others (?) |
Hamm |
| Commercial Co-star |
Michael Jordan |
Ronald McDonald |
Hamm |
| Buildings Named After |
Mia Hamm Building (largest building on Nike's Beaverton campus) |
none (?) |
Hamm |
| Wayne Gretzky thinks is the real "great one" |
Yes (quote from Gretzky on ball presented to Mia upon opening of her
building: "Mia, you are the REAL 'Great One.'" |
No |
Hamm |
| National Team Debut |
age 15 |
age 20 (turns out there actually is a baseball national team, but its
limited to amateurs) |
Hamm |
| Olympic Medals |
1 gold (1996), 1 silver (2000) |
1 silver (demonstration, 1984) |
Hamm |
| World Championships |
3 (1996 Olympics, 1991 World Cup, 1999 World Cup) |
0 |
Hamm |
| National Championships |
4 (University of North Carolina, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1993) |
1 (MLB "World" Series with Oakland A's, 1989) |
Hamm |
| Media Coverage |
15 seconds at 50th minute of Sportscenter,
Jerry
Trecker column |
Saturation coverage on ABC news, Time, Sportscenter, etc. |
McGwire |
| Typical Fan |
12-year old soccer player |
50-year old couch potato |
Hamm |
| Plays Nomar Garciaparra's favorite sport
|
Yes |
No |
Hamm |
| Drug of Choice |
Caffeine |
Steroids (but the kind that is legal in baseball) |
Hamm |
| Shoe |
Nike M9 |
None |
Hamm |
| Web Search Hits (AltaVista) |
1 553 (including a far
more impressive goal record page) |
21 478 |
McGwire |
| Book (author, best Amazon ranking) |
Go
for the Goal: A Champion's Guide to Winning in Soccer and Life
(Amazon sales rank, on 21 June 1999: 89)
|
None
|
Hamm |
| Book (subject, best Amazon ranking) |
3 771 for On
the Field With Mia Hamm |
72 846 for Mark
McGwire: A Biography |
Hamm |
| Items listed on eBay |
Check
(117 on 4 July 1999)
|
Check
(3951 on 4 July 1999)
|
McGwire |
| People Magazine's Most Beautiful People Awards |
1 |
0 |
Hamm |
This page has generated a few interesting
comments. If you would like to contribute, send me mail.
When Roberto Baggio sneezes he gets a four-page spread. When I
scored my 100th international goal I got a two-line mention in my local
paper.
Caroline Morace, who scored 105 international goals
for Italy
Page History
This page was created in response to the dismal media coverage when Mia
Hamm scored her 100th career goal during the same summer that the media
was inundating us with coverage of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa chasing
Roger Maris' home run record.
Since then, a lot has changed. Mia has scored a few more goals (up to
111 as of the end of USA '99), and the media gave the Women's World Cup
more coverage than I ever imagined was possible. The US team (and Mia
Hamm in particular) got far more than their share of this coverage,
maybe even more than Mark McGwire did. Perhaps its time for a Sun Wen
comparison page instead, or a page on the comparative lack of attention
paid to the men's national team...
That's ok, we like the sweeter cereals.
Mia Hamm, on the Women's National Team not being on a Wheaties Box.
Dave's Soccer Page
France '98 Travelogue
David Evans
evans@virginia.edu
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