Top+Non-USA+Female+Contenders+6

Members: Kelsey Falconer and Jennifer Li

Maria Sharapova 21 year old, Maria Sharapova was born on April 1987. She is a Russian tennis player. She was born in Siberia, Russia. She is a natural lefty and played as a lefty at age ten for six months. But, then she changed back to right. In world ranking, this she is number three with 3986 points. In 2005, Maria won the ESPY for “best female tennis player”. Also, in 2005, she became Russia’s first female tennis player to be ranked number one in the world and the fifth youngest female to ever hold that position. Maria is talented, hard-working, and is also a model! She’s going to represent Russia in the 2008 Olympics. Guo Jing Jing The 26 year old Chinese diver, Guo Jing Jing, is one of the greatest female divers in history. Guo Jing Jing was born in HeBei province. She won two gold medals, making her career with a total of nine medals (eight gold and one silver) in five world championships starting in 1998. She has been undefeated since 2001. Guo Jing Jing is one of China’s most dominant athletes, and she has tons and tons of fans! But now, her fans worry because she announced that she would retire after the 2008 Olympics in BeiJing. Mehboba Ahadyar Mehboba Ahadyar, 19, is the only female on Afghanistan’s 2008 Olympics Team. She is also Afghanistan’s fastest female runner. Even though Afghanistan is not a women-friendly country, Mehboba ignores all the criticism and works hard with determination. One of her famous quotes is, "I feel bad about all these things that happen to me every day, but I'll still march forward. I never show weakness, I'll fight through these    challenges    ." One of the challenges she faces is, when Mehboba leaves her house, the boys in her neighborhood yell, "Hero, hero, look at the hero of our country!" But, the boys are actually making fun of the girl who is trying to realize her Olympic dreams. Sometimes, her family is worried about the safety of them. The Taliban doesn’t like women stepping up and fulfilling their dreams. But, even though their family could be in danger, Mehboba’s parents admire their daughter’s determination and grit, and support their daughter.

Resources [|http://fractalenlightenment.blogspot.com/2008/03/only-female-in-afghanistan-2008.html -http://school.eb.com/all/eb/article-273523?query=guo%20jingjing&ct=

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