Carol Blazejowski, basketball star and Vice President and General Manager of the WNBA’s New York Liberty team, has publicly acknowledged her same-sex partner.
The disclosure was made May 13 at a media event. In a biographical note released to the media, Blazejowski named her partner, Joyce, and their two children, Lainey and Luke.
Her announcement was not news to her team members, who said they were already well-acquainted with her family. Teammate and forward Sue Wick said, “I’m glad she has the confidence and pride to say who she is.”
Blazejowki’s high school didn’t even have a women’s basketball team until her senior year, when school officials finally gave in after she threatened to try out for the men’s team. She went on to receive countless honors.
Blazejowski was named a three-time “All-American” player, received the first-ever Margaret Wade Trophy for collegiate Women’s Basketball Player of the Year, won a silver medal in the 1979 Pan American Games, and earned a gold medal in the 1979 World Championships. She has been named to the Basketball Hall of Fame and the New Jersey Sports Hall of Fame and was deemed one of the top ten all-time greats of women’s Division I basketball.
Blazejowski once wrote to a fan, “It was a long a difficult journey, but each time I walk into the Garden for a Liberty game and each time I see a little girl wearing a Liberty jersey, I know it was worth the fight.”
