Everyone saw pain and called it courage.

That's from Issue 001 of Dear Sport, my letter to the 1996 U.S. women's gymnastics team. It's about Kerri Strug's vault, the Magnificent Seven, and how the way we see our heroes changes over time.

Read it free. Tell me where to send it. It's about a seven-minute read.

What is Dear Sport?

A monthly printed letter about women's sports. Each issue starts with one athlete, moment, or era and follows the bigger question inside it. Women's sports are never only about sports.

What members get each month

• A printed letter about one women's sports story and the bigger theme inside it
• A syllabus for going deeper
• Story-inspired extras picked to go with the issue