It's Not About the Bra: Play Hard, Play Fair, and Put the Fun Back Into Competitive Sports

Youth sports aren't just about fun and games anymore. What should be a pleasurable experience is often marred by poor sportsmanship, trash talking, win-at-all-cost attitudes, and, in the worst cases, violence. But World Cup soccer champion and Olympic gold medalist Brandi Chastain has a solution. In It's Not About the Bra, Chastain draws on lessons learned in her phenomenal career and in her experience as a parent to illuminate "the beautiful game" and provide creative answers to the challenges that face young athletes and their parents.

Chastain emphasizes the importance of developing leadership skills, finding (and becoming) role models, and giving back to one's team and community. She offers a blueprint for kids and parents alike on how to play fair, win (and lose) with grace, and, above all, have a good time doing it.

Brandi Chastain has been part of the U.S. National Team since 1987 and with that team won two World Cups, an Olympic gold, and an Olympic silver medal. She was one of the founding players of the WUSA, the country's first women's professional soccer league, and, as team captain, led the San Jose CyberRays to a first-ever championship in that league. At Santa Clara University, Chastain won the 1990 Hermann Award, the most prestigious honor in collegiate soccer. She resides in San Jose, California, with her husband, Jerry Smith, coach of the nationally ranked Santa Clara University women's soccer team, and her soccer-playing stepson, Cameron.