Sports Desk- Turkey is Sending Record Number of Female Athletes to Olympics

Turkey, my late father's home country, is sending 105 athletes to the 2012 London Olympics, which start on July 27th. For the first time, the delegation includes more female than male athletes. In total, 59 female athletes will be representing Turkey as will 46 men.

Among the impressive stories is that of women's gymnast Gokce Uctas, 21, (pictured above). The young woman from Gaziantep province in southern central Turkey is the first woman to qualify as a gymnast for Turkey. Uctas won a silver medal on vault at the 2009 Mediterranean Games in Pescara, Italy.

But, perhaps the most surprising athlete competing for Turkey is American women's basketball player Quaintra Hollingsworth, an African-American who played for Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va. Hollingsworth, who plays professional basketball in Turkey, acquired Turkish citizenship to play for the national team.

Other women's basketball players for Turkey, include Esmeral Tucluer (we believe she is the one pictured in blue), Birsel Vardarli and Nilay Kataltepe.

Turkey will face the United States in women's basketball during the Olympics. Interestingly enough, four American players for the Team USA squad have played or are playing for Turkish professional teams. These players include Diane Taurasi, one of the best women's basketball players in the world, as well as Tamika Catchings and Angel McCoughtry.

The two countries will also face each other in indoor women's volleyball on August 5th. The Turkish volleyball team is ranked ninth in the world; the squad consists of several strong players, including Gizem Guresen, Eda Erdem, Naz Aydemir and Esra Gumus.

The American team features one player in Logan Tom, a Stanford alumni, who plays professionally for Fenerbahce (Istanbul) in Turkey. Other American volleyball players of note include Kim Glass, Alisha Glass and Stacy Sykora.

http://www.olimpiyakometisi.org.tr

http://www.usavolleyball.org