#nineforix

It's here! Today at 1:45ET -- tune in for a Livestream Q&A with soccer greats Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy and Brandi Chastain, hosted by Lean In and ESPN.

Last Tuesday, ESPN aired a groundbreaking documentary – in prime time – on why women deserve equal pay for equal work. Really.

The world’s most valuable cable network, and the one most popular amongst American men, spent an hour on Venus Williams’ fight for equality at Wimbledon....

...When Andy Murray won Wimbledon this weekend, USA Today ran a story titled “Andy Murray wins Wimbledon, ends 77-year British drought,” forgetting the four British women who have won the title during that so-called “drought.” CNN and others did the same thing – once again placing the men’s game in a historical and cultural context that seems bigger and more important than the women’s.

Thus Venus Vs. is perhaps most significant for depicting Williams as a bona fide sports legend, and for being aired on the network that specializes in the canonization of male athletes...

On IGN‘s, San Francisco Chronicle‘s and Complex Magazine‘s lists of the greatest sports documentaries of all-time, a total of zero are about female athletes.

Now ESPN is giving us 9 prime time documentaries about women, directed by women, aimed at the general public. It’s a monumental media moment, and more than enough reason to tune in Tuesday nights for the next 8 weeks.

Miss Representation (@representpledge) will be joining espnW's live-tweet of tonight's "Venus Vs." premiere on ESPN (8ET).

I like playing sports and I like watching sports. I literally do not understand how someone could not like either. I'm sorry; I just fundamentally do not understand. I'm currently Googling "why some people don't like sports" so I can maybe understand. The first result is http://www.sportssuck.org, a site that is basically anti-professional sports because of the rowdiness and dedication to the outcome of a game. I understand this - some people just don't have a team and don't have that loyalty. This is anti-watching sports, but do these people like playing any sport? I would hope so. If you're more of an independent person, then swimming or tennis, or at least casual jogs around the neighborhood. If you're a team player, then look at how many team sports exist.

For me, it's more than winning or losing (in fact, I don't care if I win or lose on any of my rec teams), but rather it's about the team bonding and the persistence during games. Sure, to a certain degree I also work out because I love eating large quantities of food, but I also equally love going to the bar after a game and drinking with my teammates. I will admit there are so many times during games when I think to myself "why am I here? I want to go home," but I keep playing because that's what I need to do. It's about the preseverence and committment to the team that's important to me. It gives me a sort of structure and responsibility to my life. It also doesn't hurt when I can out-run a defender and know that the work I put into my game was worth it. 

I like watching sports, because I like seeing talented athletes' passion for their game and the finesse they have that I will never demonstrate. I have teams I support, but I'm not a die-hard fan of any team. I have not seen every game the Ducks, Blazers, Timbers, or Seahawks have played in their current or most recent season, but I do like staying involved and catching games when they're convenient. Doing this allows me to break the ice with strangers or provide a topic of conversation with acquaintances. Watching sports also allows me watch the evolution of a team's structure, management, players, etc. I like seeing that progression and knowing the roots. It's also a huge social thing for me - I love beer and I love watching sports at bars.

Now, onto women in sports. I appreciate a lady more when I find out she plays or played a sport. This is funny because you know that Enterprise commercial where the employees announce their college sport? I love it. I enjoy hearing about peoples' high school careers or their love for a sport and its continuation. In 2007, I started playing indoor soccer with a friend's mother. I was the youngest player on their team by a good 20 years. You know what was wild? I started playing soccer around the same time they did - 1997 when I was in first grade and they were married with children. No matter how little I support professional women's sports (well except for women's soccer, go Thorns), I still support the players. I didn't watch a single NCAAW basketball game this season, but I respect the hell out of those ladies. Brittney Griner in the NBA? I don't think it'll work out, but get 'em girl. Surprise me. Look at how much these women do outside of their sport, too.

I think the issue people have with women's sports is their expectation. Of course women's games are going to be "less impressive" than men's. Women play at a different level - not necessarily lower, but differently. I love/hate co-ed outdoor soccer because I love the sport, but playing with men is so unlike playing with women. These guys have 60+ pounds on me and are taller than me. There's no way I can compete similarly when I am 5'3" and 130 pounds. People need to stop hating on women's sports and just appreciate these women who work equally hard during practices and games. I remember when I played 3v3 coed intermural basketball in college and it was a disaster. I only played because I was one of a few girls within my friends who wanted to play. I don't care about Ws or Ls; I care about everything that leads up to games and everything that comes after.

Check out ESPN's Nine for IX documentary/film series coming out this summer. More info here.

July 2 - Venus Williams - We know about the swing and the swagger. But what most Americans don't know about Venus Williams is how she changed the course of her sport. "Venus VS." looks at the star's fight for prize equality.

July 9 - Pat Summitt - This raw, authentic portrait of legendary coach Pat Summitt takes the camera from the filmmaker's hands and places it into those who know her best. If it's possible to do justice to Summitt, "Pat XO" does it.

July 16 - Audrey Mestre - Through her battle with scoliosis, Audrey Mestre discovered a passion for the ocean that led her to competitive free diving. This film looks at the human quest to push beyond our limits, a quest that can sometimes be fatal.

July 23 - Lisa Olson - When a female journalist was sexually harassed by Patriots players in 1990, it set off a national debate about the presence of women in men's locker rooms. In this film, you'll hear stories of raw behavior and remarkable resolve.

July 30 - Sheryl Swoopes - Sheryl Swoopes has struggled with love, family, money and lack of recognition, but she has never lost her spirit. In this portrait, you will meet someone who is not your everyday superstar, but a woman who has defied a multitude of labels.

August 6 - Katarina Witt - Katarina Witt may have been one of East Germany's most famous athletes at the height of the Cold War, but "The Diplomat" shows how the figure skater ended up being a beneficiary and victim of the socialist regime.

August 13 - Mary Decker - Mary Decker was supposed to finally have her Olympic moment at the 1984 Games. But that moment turned to heartbreak after a collision with Zola Budd produced one of the most infamous moments in Olympic history.

August 20 - There is a double standard placed on women in sports -- they have to be the best players on the field and the sexiest off of it. Can female athletes ever gain equal footing with their male counterparts?

Nine for IX

If anybody knows Nathan at all, you know that he absolutely loves the 30 for 30 series from ESPN films.  It's a bit of an obsession.  So, he was absolutely thrilled to see them promoting their new series, Nine for IX, for release in July of this summer.

We are excited, not just because it's more intake of the excellent sport documentaries from ESPN, but because it looks like it will be yet another strong example of the importance of women not just in sports, but as leaders in our every day society.

It's crazy that we still live in a country that lives by a mantra that you can do anything if you put your mind to it, but women are still oppressed when they try to do so.

We hope these movies live up to its strong trailer and just doesn't serve as an example of what women can achieve through sports, but serve as an example of what they can achieve in anything they do.