A letter to my team:

Remember the night before the final World Cup game, when we all got together and wrote down what we felt about each other and then taped the notes to the person's back? Then we ran back to our rooms and read them. Mine said, "Kick me." The note under it said, "Kick me harder." Just kidding, but really, some of your phrases were unbelievable. Things like, "I love how hard you play," "I love how you play for this team," "You play with passion." I feel the same way about every one of you guys. In sports, we go through some absolutely wonderful times and some absolutely fearful times - like when you've got that really easy sitter and you miss it, and everyone in the stands is looking at you saying, "Hey, come on! I could have finished that one!" And your teammates look at you and they don't judge you. In the tough times and the great times, they treat you just the same. That's what sports is all about. Sports isn't about awards or world championships, though those are great. It's about the relationships we have with one another. So that night, before the final game, reading all those quotes, I'd already won. I won because I'm part of a great team. We're players who believe in each other and work extremely hard for one another. From the bottom of my heart, you guys, we did it together. I love you.

-Mia Hamm

Published by:  Women's Sports & Fitness, March 2000.

Contributed by:  Dave O'Brien