Jackie Powell
Jackie Powell has covered women's basketball since 2019, including college basketball, the WNBA and international and high school prospects. Her work has appeared in Bleacher Report, Yahoo Sports, The Next, Sports Illustrated, MSNBC.com, SLAM and Harper's Bazaar, and she hosts the 'Locked on Women's Basketball' podcast every other week. She also is a Lady Gaga stan, a connoisseur of pop music and a mental health advocate.
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Yahoo
37 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Caitlin Clark's biceps and the bigger conversation around women and muscles
Thanks to a strain that's left her sidelined for weeks, all eyes are on Caitlin Clark's quad right now. But it's the Indiana Fever star's arms that had people talking in the days leading up to her second WNBA season. It all started in March, when 23-year-old Clark was photographed cheering on her alma mater, the Iowa Hawkeyes, during the NCAA Big Ten tournament. 'Okkkkk hello arms!' one commenter wrote, adding a flexed bicep emoji in reaction to the point guard's noticeably muscular appearance. Those muscles were on display when Clark's team photo was released in early May, prompting side-by-side comparisons to her 2024 physique. According to Clark herself, she's been intentionally bulking up since last year. 'I try to put on some weight and I've been working hard in the weight room,' she told reporters in August. That ramped up in the offseason, per the Fever's head athletic performance coach, Sarah Kessler, who told ESPN that Clark was in the weight room four to five times a week. Cue the toned courtside pic that got tongues wagging in March — and a lot of body discourse that not everyone is comfortable with. 'Speculating about women's bodies generally and speculation of women athletes' bodies is not new,' Michelle Manno, a sociologist, associate provost for community enrichment at Northwestern University and the author of Denied: Women, Sports and the Contradictions of Identity, tells Yahoo Life. 'What stands out as new to me in this case is that the speculation is positive. … For the most part, we're seeing people applauding [Clark's] effort to get stronger and gain muscles between seasons.' Indeed, adjectives like 'beautiful' have been used alongside 'jacked' and 'ripped' as commenters weigh in on Clark's muscles. One X user hailed her as having the 'peak female athlete form,' while an Instagram commenter wrote, 'Girl you show off those muscles. You worked hard on those. Lookin' great.' According to Mikala Jamison, author of the newsletter Body Type, those compliments are a sign of evolving standards. 'It's hard to overstate how much conversations about women and their musculature has changed,' she tells Yahoo Life. She references a survey done by writer Leigh Peele in 2009 (which Jamison wrote about in 2022) in which 2,000 women were polled on their views about weightlifting and the attractiveness of muscles. The majority of those surveyed indicated that they didn't like the look of muscles on their own bodies and figured men didn't find it attractive either. A majority also said they'd rather be 'too thin than either too fat or too muscular,' and when asked which female celebrity exemplified the 'muscular/bulky' look, many chose Hilary Swank (43%) and Jessica Biel (36%). 'There was this sense that any shade of muscularity on a woman's body wasn't something that, at least per this survey, was desired by a lot of women. And there are a thousand reasons for that in the culture and in media messaging,' says Jamison. 'But that has definitely changed over the years, and you see that in things like more women strength training regularly than ever before.' A growing interest in lifting weights, eating more protein and paying more attention to the benefits of building muscle has roots in conversations about menopause and aging. However, the reaction to Clark's body in particular seems to be an indication that the positive messaging about stronger bodies could be reaching and influencing younger women as well. The focus on Clark's muscles follows a general shift in gears in terms of how female athletes — and their bodies — are being discussed. 'People were talking about this a lot during the [2024] Olympics with Ilona Maher,' says Jamison, referring to the U.S. women's rugby player who won bronze in Paris last summer. 'She was on the cover of Sports Illustrated and she's not a super-slender, super-skinny woman. She's very muscular.' After nabbing the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit digital cover last fall, Maher donned a bikini again to pose for the pages of the magazine's recently released 2025 print issue, which quotes her as saying, 'I hope people see my photos and understand that strength can be so beautiful and so feminine.' The latest issue has won praise for featuring various female athletes, including fellow Olympians Jordan Chiles and Gabby Thomas. 'How different my and many other women's lives would be if these strong bodies were the center of attention when I was growing up,' one fan commented. 'If you see more different types, sizes and shapes of bodies, it gives any person who is seeing those body types an understanding that there are many different ways that your body could look, or maybe that you want your body to look like,' Jamison points out. But even still, who people praise is dependent on certain standards. 'If I think about athletes like Serena Williams or Brittney Griner, the commentary around their bodies throughout the course of their careers has been pretty uniformly negative,' says Manno. 'So when I see what's happening with Caitlin Clark, I have to think that her race and her gender expression' — i.e., being a white, straight woman — 'are really helping her in this moment.' At the end of the day, the beauty standard for any and all women continues to be a tight line to walk, especially for those in sports, according to Manno. 'A lot of women athletes still navigate this very strong tension between wanting to be strong, wanting to do the things that they need to do to excel at their sport and still be accepted societally as looking, quote-unquote, appropriately feminine enough,' she says.
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Yahoo
Jordan Chiles Turns Heads With Stunning BET Awards Outfits
Jordan Chiles Turns Heads With Stunning BET Awards Outfits originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles made waves online after revealing her jaw-dropping fashion moments from the 2025 BET Awards. Though the event ended on Monday, fans are still talking about her eye-catching looks, which she shared on Instagram days later. Chiles, 24, posted two outfits from the night that had followers in awe. 'My BET experience!! Loved every minute of it,' she captioned her post. The first outfit showed a bold side of Chiles. She wore a black leather dress with a sharp, asymmetrical top and a fitted, midi-length skirt. Knee-high black boots completed the powerful look. Meanwhile, her second outfit is a sheer, nude-toned dress with long sleeves, ruffled detailing and a flared short skirt. Chiles' post quickly drew thousands of likes and excited comments. 'She keeps GIVING!!!!!' one Instagram user commented. 'Very classy and beautiful. Her body is covered. Stunning,' added another fan. Others continued to show support, saying, 'You are everywhere these days! I love that for you! Enjoy your best life beautiful!' and 'That girl looks awesome.' 'You look good,' another simply said. Known for her performances on the mat, Chiles continues to build a name for herself in fashion. The gymnast was styled by celebrity stylist Jason Bolden, with one of the dresses designed by Rick Owens. Following the awards, Chiles was spotted courtside at a WNBA matchup between the Los Angeles Sparks and the Golden State Valkyries. Though the game ended in a dramatic overtime win for the Valkyries, Chiles still caught attention for her courtside presence and fashion sense. Chiles' recent Instagram post from the BET Awards proves that she's not just an athlete but also a rising fashion story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 11, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Yahoo
Courtney Vandersloot and Wife Allie Quigley Make Major Mother's Day Announcement
There's no doubt Mother's Day this year has been extra tough on Chicago Sky point guard Courtney Vandersloot. Sloot lost her mother, Jan, who passed away last June after a two-year battle with cancer. The loss resulted in Vandersloot briefly stepping away from the New York Liberty last year, and may have contributed to her diminished role in the second half of the season. Advertisement The first Mother's Day after her passing has to be incredibly difficult, but this year it comes with even more emotions for Vandersloot and her wife - three-time WNBA All-Star and two-time Sixth Woman of the Year Allie Quigley - after the pair welcomed their first baby together, as announced on social media via PEOPLE. "We are over the moon to welcome our baby girl to the world," Vandersloot and Quigley, affectionately known as "the VanderQuigs," tell PEOPLE. "We have been dreaming of this moment for a long time, and it's better than we could have ever imagined!" Vandersloot and Quigley have been together nearly ten years, officially tying the knot in December of 2018 - which is also when they first revealed their relationship publicly. Advertisement Vandersloot, 36, is back in Chicago where she spent the first 12 seasons of her WNBA career, leading the Sky to a championship in 2021 alongside Quigley - becoming the first married couple to win a professional sports championship together. The former Gonzaga icon will look to rebound from a tough 2024 season while mentoring the litany of young talented players on the Chicago roster, including rookie guard Hailey Van Lith and second year post players Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso. Related: Fever's Lexie Hull Left Impressed by Dream's New Guard
