Most of the speakers at the National Football League’s first-ever women’s summit gave plain old talks on Thursday, with the exception of Holly K. Peterson. The women’s tackle football player, charter school athletic director and spoken word artist known as “HK Poet” took the stage either side of big names like Condoleezza Rice and Billie Jean King—and still may have gotten the biggest round of applause for her rhythmic, emotional opus about what it means to be an athlete and a woman.
The summit took place over two days in San Francisco leading up to Sunday’s Super Bowl, with speakers explaining what sports mean to them and why that common endeavor may be a key factor in crafting the next generation of women leaders.
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