PDF version - University of Washington

RON WURZER
HOPE SOLO AND OTHER UW ATHLETES
TAKE THEIR GAME TO THE BIGGEST
STAGE IN THE WORLD BY DEREK BELT
NESTLED ON THE SHORES OF LAKE WASHINGTON, with its iconic cherry trees
and breathtaking vistas, sits one of the world’s premier research institutions. We know it
well. For 150 years, the University of Washington has been a place where ambition and excellence
thrive, where faculty, students and alumni succeed at the highest levels.
Few higher than the Olympic Games.
Hope Solo, ’04, is an Olympic champion and one of the most recognized names in
sports. The star goalkeeper of the U.S. women’s soccer team, Solo led the Americans to the
gold medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. She was the ninth most Googled female athlete
in 2011 and dazzled audiences on the smash TV series Dancing with the Stars.
Solo will be in goal this summer when the U.S. defends its gold medal at the 2012 Olympics,
which run from July 27 to Aug. 12 in London. Part of her preparation includes a stint
with the Seattle Sounders Women, a role she says has allowed her to give back to the city
that launched her stellar career.
“I’m so excited to be here,” Solo, Washington’s all-time leader in shutouts (18), saves
(325), and goals-against average (1.02), told The Seattle Times. “I always knew at the end of
the day, I’d end up back here, whether it was when I retire or even before that.”
Other Huskies gearing up for the ’12 Games include rowers Mary Whipple and Dave
UWalum.com/Columns June 2012
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