Playing basketball isn't ladylike.That's what Jewell Chapman's high school principal told her in 1961 when he banned the girls basketball program.\"We were very frustrated，\" said Chapman，a forward for her high school team of Des Moines.

Nearly 50 years later，Chapman is back on the court.She's 62 and plays for the Hot Pink Grannies， joining about 10 other women on a team whose uniforms are black bloomers and hot pink socks.They play in the Iowa Granny Basketball League.

It's one of dozens of basketball leagues for women over 50 that have sprung up across the country. For some， it's an opportunity to exercise and socialize; for others， it's a once-denied chance to compete. You see more and more senior women's teams participating in state and national competitions.

The women on the Hot Pink Grannies are good-natured but competitive when game time comes.\"I think I'm tough，\" says Hot Pink Granny Colleen Pulliam， 69， flexing her biceps at opponents in a game against the Strutters， known for their brilliant yellow socks.

Granny Basketball Leagues and similar groups are scattered through much of the country， including California， Connecticut， Louisiana， New Mexico， North Carolina， Pennsylvania and Washington， D.C.

打籃球可不是女孩干的事，這是1961年尤厄爾·查普曼的中學(xué)校長(zhǎng)對(duì)她說(shuō)的話，當(dāng)年這位校長(zhǎng)可是“封殺”了學(xué)校的女子籃球隊(duì)。曾任戴斯莫尼斯中學(xué)校隊(duì)前鋒的查普曼說(shuō)：“這讓我們感到很失落?！?/p>

然而，50年后，查普曼又回到了球場(chǎng)上。今年62歲的她現(xiàn)在在愛(ài)荷華州“奶奶籃球聯(lián)盟”的“桃紅奶奶”隊(duì)“效力”?！疤壹t奶奶”隊(duì)由11名隊(duì)員組成，隊(duì)員們統(tǒng)一穿黑色燈籠褲和桃紅色球襪。

近年來(lái)，美國(guó)出現(xiàn)了一大批由50歲以上女性組成的籃球聯(lián)盟。對(duì)于有些人來(lái)說(shuō)，這只是個(gè)鍛煉身體和進(jìn)行社會(huì)交往的機(jī)會(huì)；而對(duì)于其他一些人來(lái)說(shuō)，這可是個(gè)重溫“舊夢(mèng)”的機(jī)會(huì)。 參加州際比賽和國(guó)家級(jí)比賽的老年女隊(duì)越來(lái)越多，今后此類的籃球聯(lián)盟將會(huì)越來(lái)越普遍。

“桃紅奶奶”隊(duì)的隊(duì)員性情溫和，但在比賽中都很具競(jìng)爭(zhēng)力。69歲的隊(duì)員考琳·普廉姆在比賽中向穿著清一色艷黃襪子的對(duì)手“闊步者”隊(duì)炫耀自己的肱二頭肌，她說(shuō)：“我覺(jué)得自己很強(qiáng)壯。”

類似“奶奶籃球聯(lián)盟”的籃球組織遍布美國(guó)各個(gè)地區(qū)，其中包括加利福尼亞、康涅狄格、路易斯安那、新墨西哥、北卡羅來(lái)納、賓夕法尼亞和首都華盛頓。