Phaidra Knight (born July 4, 1974) is an American former
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
footballer who was a member of the
United States national team
The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions.
Olympic teams
Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...
from 1999 to 2017. She participated in the 2002, 2006, and 2010
Women's Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is the women's rugby union world championship which is organised by World Rugby. The first Rugby World Cup for women was held in 1991, but it was not until the 1998 tournament that the tournament received official backing ...
, and won All-World Team honors in the first two World Cups.
She was named
USA Rugby
USA Rugby (officially the United States of America Rugby Football Union, Ltd.) is the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in the United States. Its role is to achieve and maintain “high levels of quality in all aspects of rugb ...
's Player of the Decade in 2010. On October 26, 2017,
World Rugby
World Rugby is the world governing body for the sport of rugby union. World Rugby organises the Rugby World Cup every four years, the sport's most recognised and most profitable competition. It also organises a number of other international rug ...
announced that she would be inducted into the
World Rugby Hall of Fame
The World Rugby Hall of Fame (formerly the IRB Hall of Fame) recognises special achievement and contribution to the sport of rugby union. The World Rugby Hall of Fame covers players, coaches, administrators, match officials, institutions and other ...
on November 10 of that year, with the ceremony held at the Hall's
facility in
Rugby, England
Rugby is a market town in eastern Warwickshire, England, close to the River Avon. In the 2021 census its population was 78,125, making it the second-largest town in Warwickshire. It is the main settlement within the larger Borough of Rugby whi ...
. Knight is an open lesbian sportswoman.
Early life
Knight was born on July 4, 1974. She grew up on her family's farm near the small town of Irwinton, Georgia. At the age of four, Knight began helping out on the farm in the summer, picking vegetables and hoisting pigs into the trucks. Working on the farm did not get in the way for young Knight to play sports. Knight began playing basketball at the young age of four. She was able to use a portion of her family's field as a basketball court, with her uncle (a basketball player) installing a basketball hoop for her.
Although she was already playing basketball Knight had always wanted to play on the midget league football team, but girls were not allowed to play. In her efforts to be as close to the game of football as she could, she joined the midget league cheer leading squad instead.
Knight began playing organized sports in middle school, joining the basketball team. She would continue on to play Varsity Basketball in High School along with Varsity Tennis.
Rugby
After graduating from
Wilkinson County High School
The Wilkinson County School District is a public school district in Wilkinson County, Georgia, United States, based in Irwinton. It serves the communities of Allentown, Gordon
Gordon may refer to:
People
* Gordon (given name), a masculine gi ...
, Knight went to college at
Alabama State University
Alabama State University (ASU) is a public historically black university in Montgomery, Alabama. Founded in 1867, ASU is a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund.
History
Alabama State University was founded in 1867 as the Lin ...
. Knight put aside sports in college to focus on her academics and dream of going to law school. She would go on to attend the
University of Wisconsin Law School
The University of Wisconsin Law School is the professional graduate law school of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Located in Madison, Wisconsin, the school was founded in 1868. The University of Wisconsin Law School is guided by a "law in ...
. Knight entered law school with the intention of getting back into competitive sports, with the intention of trying out for their basketball team.
"I met a young lady at a party and she invited me to try out for rugby," Knight recalled. "I'd never heard of rugby. She characterized it as being like football and soccer. Then she said 'tackle' and I was like 'I'm there.' I went to a practice the next week, and that was it."
Knight graduated from Wisconsin Law in 1999, making her first U.S. Rugby Team that same year. She played with the USA Rugby team for 12 years, from 1999 to 2013. Recognized as one of the best players in the world in two different positions (prop and flanker). Knight has made three world cup appearances with the USA Women's Rugby team in 2002, 2006 and 2010.
Honors and recognition
* 2003, the only American named to the 2003 World XV team
* 2002, World Cup All-World Team honors
* 2006, World Cup All-World Team honors
* 2010, named USA Rugby Player of the Decade
* 2010, Travel & Training Fund Grant recipient from The Women's Sports Foundation
* 2010, appeared on MTV's
Made
Made or MADE may refer to:
Entertainment Film
* ''Made'' (1972 film), United Kingdom
* ''Made'' (2001 film), United States Music
* ''Made'' (Big Bang album), 2016
* ''Made'' (Hawk Nelson album), 2013
* ''Made'' (Scarface album), 2007
*'' M.A.D.E. ...
as a rugby coach
* 2017, Inducted into World Rugby Hall of Fame
Bobsled
In 2013, Knight pursued a new goal. She was vying for a spot on the U.S. Bobsled team, with dreams of competing in the
2014 Winter Olympics
, ''Zharkie. Zimnie. Tvoi'')
, nations = 88
, events = 98 in 7 sports (15 disciplines)
, athletes = 2,873
, opening = 7 February 2014
, closing = 23 February 2014
, opened_by = President Vladimir Putin
, cauldron =
, stadium = Fisht Olympic ...
in
Sochi
Sochi ( rus, Со́чи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg) is the largest resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi River, along the Black Sea in Southern Russia, with a population of 466,078 residents, up to 600,000 residents in ...
. Although she trained immensely, including time at the
Lake Placid training center, she did not make the team.
Coaching career
In 2016, Knight began coaching women's rugby. She joined the staff of
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...
's Women's Rugby Football Clubs as Forwards Coach for the Fall 2016 season. Launching in the Fall of 2017, Knight was appointed Coach of the Women's Rugby Program at
Monroe College
Monroe College is a private for-profit college in New York City. It was founded in 1933 and has campuses in the Bronx, New Rochelle and Saint Lucia, with an extension site in Manhattan. The college is named after James Monroe, the fifth pres ...
, a new program that Knight will be spearheading.
References
External links
USA Rugby profileWorld Rugby Hall of Fame profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Knight, Phaidra
United States women's international rugby union players
Living people
1974 births
People from Wilkinson County, Georgia
University of Wisconsin Law School alumni
Rugby union players from Georgia (U.S. state)
American rugby union coaches
American female rugby union players
World Rugby Hall of Fame inductees
American lesbian sportswomen
American LGBT rugby union players
LGBT people from Georgia (U.S. state)
African-American LGBT people
21st-century American sportswomen