On the latest episode of Locked On Women’s Basketball, host Natalie Heavren captures the second part of her conversation with legendary Kansas women’s basketball coach Marian E. Washington (the first installment aired last Friday). Heavren and Washington pick up where they left off and discuss a range of topics, including Washington’s coaching career, her experience as an administrator at Kansas, and the legacy she hopes she is leaving behind. They also discuss her journey to, and experience at, the 1996 Olympics.
Heavren opens the show by asking Washington what kept her motivated to continue coaching after her playing career was over. Washington recalled a trip to South America. “A teammate of mine, Ellen Mosher, we were in the airport,” Washington said. “And we talked about, joked about, one day, you know, when we were not athletes, we would become coaches. Of course, when you’re that young … you don’t think about not being able to play. But we teased each other and said, hey, we’re going to become coaches.” Turns out her predictions were spot-on.
Later on, Heavren and Washington talked about some of Washington’s early days coaching at Kansas. “I look back and say, I was so happy I was able to do it as a young person,” Washington reflects. “But I’m exhausted just thinking about it today. … It took a lot. But I really believed that our women’s program deserved to be supported.”
Heavren and Washington end the show by going back in time to 1996, when Washington went to the Olympics as a coach. Washington remembers finally getting the call in 1995 about going to the Olympic games. “It was Tara [VanDerveer] asking me if I would like to be on her coaching staff. And I thought … after all this time, finally, I am going to be part of an Olympic experience.”
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