Hope Solo: Why USA Soccer Star is Most Polarizing of All Women at 2012 Olympics

The list of stars who will be competing at the Olympics is a seemingly endless one, and while many of them are popular solely for their athletic pursuits, others transcend sports due to their personality. One such athlete is American soccer goalkeeper Hope Solo.

Solo has been a star for quite some time, and although her stellar play is part of that, her looks and honesty play into it as well. She first became widely known during the 2007 World Cup when she was the United States' starting goalkeeper and turned in a great performance throughout the tournament. Despite that, she was replaced by veteran Briana Scurry in the semifinals against Brazil.

Solo had registered three clean sheets during the competition, but the more experienced Scurry was given the big-game start and faltered as the U.S. lost 4-0. Solo wasn't shy about voicing her opinion after the game as she said that benching her was the wrong decision and that she would have saved the goals that Scurry allowed.

That might have meant career suicide for others, but Solo was talented enough that she eventually regained her teammates' respect and was the starting goalkeeper once again in the Beijing Olympics. Solo gained total vindication in 2008 as she helped lead her squad to a gold-medal victory over the same Brazilian team that ousted the Americans in the World Cup.

Solo was once again thrust into the spotlight last year as the World Cup was held in Germany. There was no controversy this time around as she was clearly the No. 1 goalie and was one of the driving forces behind the Americans' run to the finals. The United States shockingly lost to Japan despite holding a couple leads, but Solo returned to the U.S. a bigger star than she ever was.

Following the World Cup, Solo competed on Dancing with the Stars and posed nude in the ESPN Magazine Body Issue. That prompted many to questions whether she was taking advantage of her sexuality as a means to advance women's soccer. Perhaps not everyone approved of that philosophy, but there is no question that Solo helped get women's soccer more exposure than it had garnered in a decade.

Solo's polarizing ways have continued during the lead-up to the London Olympics as she is set to release an autobiography next month and has been very forthcoming in interviews. According to Nick Eaton of the Seattle Post Intelligencer, Solo admitted that she was actually conceived during a conjugal visit when her mother was visiting her father in prison.

That fact alone tells you all you need to know about the tough road that Solo has had to navigate in order to reach superstardom. It's understandable that not everyone appreciates the way Solo threw her teammate under the bus in 2007 or the way she has conducted herself in some other instances, but her life experiences have probably hardened her in many ways.

Solo is one of those athletes that fans either love or hate. If she is able to lead the United States to yet another Olympic gold medal in London, however, I have to believe there will be a lot more love than hate being thrown in her direction.

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