IN: For the upcoming film about the superhero character, see Aquaman (film). Aquaman is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in More Fun Comics #73 (November 1941). Initially a backup feature in DC's anthology titles, Aquaman later starred in several volumes of a solo comic book series.

Aquaman's first origin story was presented in flashback from his debut in More Fun Comics #73 (November 1941), narrated by the character himself: The story must start with my father, a famous undersea explorer--if I spoke his name, you would recognize it. My mother died when I was a baby, and he turned to his work of solving the ocean's secrets. His greatest discovery was an ancient city, in the depths where no other diver had ever penetrated. My father believed it was the lost kingdom of Atlantis. He made himself a water-tight home in one of the palaces and lived there, studying the records and devices of the race's marvelous wisdom. From the books and records, he learned ways of teaching me to live under the ocean, drawing oxygen from the water and using all the power of the sea to make me wonderfully strong and swift. By training and a hundred scientific secrets, I became what you see--a human being who lives and thrives under the water. In his early Golden Age appearances, Aquaman can breathe underwater and control fish and other underwater life for up to a minute. Initially, he was depicted as speaking to sea creatures "in their own language" rather than telepathically, and only when they were close enough to hear him (within a 20 yards (18 m) radius). Aquaman's adventures took place all across the world, and his base was "a wrecked fishing boat kept underwater," in which he lived. During his wartime adventures, most of Aquaman's foes were Nazi U-boat commanders and various Axis villains where he once worked with the All-Star Squadron. The rest of his adventures in the 1940s and 1950s had him dealing with various sea-based criminals, including modern-day pirates such as his longtime archenemy Black Jack, as well as various threats to aquatic life, shipping lanes, and sailors. Aquaman's last appearance in More Fun Comics was in issue #107, before being moved along with Superboy and Green Arrow to Adventure Comics, starting with issue #103 in 1946.

Who was his father?

OUT: if I spoke his name, you would recognize it.

IN: Elena Vyacheslavovna Mukhina (Russian: Elena Viacheslavovna Mukhina; first name sometimes rendered "Yelena", last name sometimes rendered "Muchina"; June 1, 1960 - December 22, 2006) was a Soviet gymnast who won the all-around title at the 1978 World Championships in Strasbourg, France. Her career was on the rise and she was widely touted as the next great gymnastics star until in 1979 a broken leg left her out of several competitions, and the recovery from that injury combined with pressure to master a dangerous and difficult tumbling move (the Thomas salto) caused her to break her neck just two weeks before the opening of the 1980 Summer Olympics, leaving her permanently quadriplegic just one month past the age of 20.

According to Larisa Latynina's 2004 interview, Mukhina's trainer, Mikhail Klimenko, was affected by her injury. Because of her devastating injury, Mukhina could not be added to the 1980 Soviet Olympic team roster. There was little doubt that the Soviet Olympic women's gymnastics team would get the gold medal in the team competition at the 1980 Summer Olympics, as it had at all previous Olympics. Nevertheless, Klimenko had desperately wanted Mukhina to make the Olympic team roster because he wanted to become the "Olympic champion's trainer." Soon after Mukhina's paralytic injury, Klimenko emigrated to Italy, where he lived with his children until his death from cancer on November 14, 2007, his 65th birthday. After Mukhina's paralysis and several other close calls with other Olympic-eligible female gymnasts, the Thomas salto was removed from the Code of Points as an allowed skill for women. It remained an allowed skill for men as of 2013, but as of the 2017-2020 quad, rollout skills were banned for both men and women. Her condition notwithstanding, Mukhina was a guest columnist for Moscow News in the late 1980s. Her injury was a featured topic in the 1990 A&E documentary More Than a Game; and her World Championship performance is captured in the ABC Sports video Gymnastics' Greatest Stars. Mukhina took a keen interest in children and young gymnasts both before and after her injury. She also expressed a deep religious faith, and was fond of horses and animated cartoons. Mukhina was thankful to her former teammates who kept in touch with her, especially Yelena Davydova, whom she described as "A real friend".

Where was her recovery?

OUT: After Mukhina's paralysis and several other close calls with other Olympic-eligible female gymnasts, the Thomas salto was removed from the Code of Points

IN: Born in Selma, Alabama, Mia was the fourth of six children of Bill and Stephanie Hamm. She wore corrective shoes as a toddler after being born with a club foot. Hamm spent her childhood on various United States Air Force bases around the world with her family. While living in Florence, Italy, Hamm first played soccer, which was hugely popular there; her entire family quickly became involved in the sport.

In 2001, Hamm was a founding player in the first professional women's soccer league in the United States, the Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA), and played for the Washington Freedom from 2001-2003. Throughout the league's history, Hamm was hailed as the star of the league and used heavily in marketing and promotion. In a poll of 1,000 advertising executives conducted in 2001, she was voted "the most appealing female athlete", garnering almost twice as many votes as the runner-up Anna Kournikova. During the league's inaugural match between the Freedom and Bay Area CyberRays at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C., Hamm was fouled in the penalty area resulting in a penalty kick that her teammate Pretinha converted to mark the first goal scored in the league. The Freedom won 1-0. In addition to the 34,148 fans in attendance being greater than any MLS game that weekend, the Turner Network Television (TNT) broadcast reached 393,087 households: more than two MLS games broadcast on ESPN and ESPN2. Playing as a midfielder and forward, Hamm played in 19 of the Freedom's 21 matches during the 2001 season. She led the team in goals (6) and assists (4). The Freedom finished in seventh place during the regular season with a 6-12-3 record. Hamm suffered a knee injury in November 2001 that kept her off the pitch for several months of early 2002. Despite playing only half the 2002 season with the Freedom, she finished the season with eight goals. The team finished in third place during the 2002 season with a 11-5-5 record and advanced to the playoffs. After winning the semi-final against the Philadelphia Charge 1-0, the team was defeated 3-2 by the Carolina Courage in the 2002 WUSA Founders Cup. Hamm scored the Freedom's second goal in the 64th minute. During the 2003 season, Hamm started in 16 of the 19 games in which she played. Her 11 goals ranked second on the team behind Abby Wambach's 13 while her 11 assists ranked first. The Freedom finished in fourth place during the regular season with a 9-8-4 record and secured a berth in the playoffs. Hamm finished her club career as a WUSA champion when the Freedom defeated the Atlanta Beat 2-1 in overtime to win the Founders Cup on August 24, 2003.

How did she do in the 2003 season?

OUT:
Her 11 goals ranked second on the team behind Abby Wambach's 13 while her 11 assists ranked first.