Women's sports

Lore & Background

Before each ancient Olympic Games, a separate women's athletic event called the Heraean Games was held at Olympia, dedicated to the goddess Hera. According to E. Married women were excluded from the Olympics even as spectators, but Cynisca won an Olympic game as owner of a chariot, as did Euryleonis, Belistiche, and others. In Sparta, women practiced the same athletic exercises as men, and Plato supported women in sports by advocating running and sword-fighting. Cultural representations of female physicality also appear in depictions of the Amazons. During the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties, women played in professional Cuju teams, an ancient Chinese ball game considered a predecessor of football. Women's Cuju used a smaller, lighter ball, smaller teams and field, and players could not use hands or feet but used heads and chests. The game was played by women of all social classes and ages, often during festivals. In the late 18th century, the French Revolution included physical education for both girls and boys, but under Napoleon it was reduced to military preparedness for boys. In Germany, GutsMuths' physical education included girls' performance measurements, leading to more active pursuit of women's sport there. Few women competed in sports in Europe and North America before the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Those who did often faced disapproval. Early professional women's sports leagues foundered. The Women's Amateur Athletic Association held its first championships earlier that year. Bicycling became popular among women in the suffragette era.

Reader's Guide

Women's sports have existed throughout history, but participation rates and activities vary by nation, era, geography, and economic development. Today, women's sports are more sport-specific and have developed amateur and professional levels, primarily in developed countries. Female participation increased notably in the last quarter of the 20th century. Very few organized sports were invented by women; examples include Newcomb ball, netball, acrobatic gymnastics, tumbling, and possibly stoolball. Women's involvement is more visible in well-developed countries, but participation and performance still vary greatly by country and sport. Despite increases, male participation remains larger globally, except in female-dominated sports. Girls' participation is higher in the United States than in Western Europe and Latin America. Two divisions exist: sports emerging as organized female sports with male exclusion, or as female variants of male-popularized sports. Female variants are common; organized female sports are rare. Except in rare cases like women's professional tennis, professional women's sport rarely provides a livable income. Competing for media coverage creates complex barriers. Recently, interest and research have increased in equipment design for female athletes and sex-specific injuries, such as concussions and the female athlete triad (RED-S). Female athletes have engaged in social activism through playing strikes, social media campaigns, and federal lawsuits on grounds of inequality, often related to Title IX.

Did You Know?

• Before each ancient Olympic Games, a separate women's athletic event called the Heraean Games was held at Olympia, dedicated to the goddess Hera.
• During the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties, women played in professional Cuju teams, an ancient Chinese ball game considered a predecessor of football.
• Bicycling became a popular activity among women in the suffragette era.