Sheryl Swoopes Biography

1971-

American basketball player

Sheryl Swoopes has played on college, professional and Olympic championship basketball teams. She has won all sorts of individual awards, owns countless records and even had a sneaker named after her. She has also played one-on-one against the redoubtable Michael Jordan. And, she has rebounded from serious knee injuries to earn league honors. But perhaps her most noteworthy achievement was playing, and staying on top of her game, shortly after having a baby.

Swoopes, a 6-foot shooting guard who once scored a record 47 points in the NCAA championship game while leading Texas Tech to the 1993 national title, led the Houston Comets of the Women's National Basketball Association to four consecutive titles from 1997-2000, and played on two gold-medal winning U.S. Olympic teams. In the midst of her competitive season the "Texas Tornado" gave birth to her son, Jordan, in July, 1997. "When she found out she was pregnant with Jordan at age 25, she committed herself to playing in basketball and staying in shape throughout the pregnancy," Elisa Ast All wrote in Pregnancy Today. "She had no morning sickness or any other symptoms that hindered her lifestyle."

SELECTED WRITINGS BY SWOOPES:

(With Greg Brown) Bounce Back, Dallas: Taylor, 1996.