The Progression of Female Athletes
Women throughout history have made extreme progress in expanding their rights and freedoms. They have also made it a point to prove that they are as equal as men through their careers, lives, and their athletic abilities. Women have come a long way in becoming well- rounded athletes, but the discrimination is still present. Although they have substantiated themselves in many ways, women are still viewed as inferior to men, especially as athletes. Women have always participated in extracurricular activities, and some even in sports. However, because women were the members in the households who cooked, cleaned, and took care of the family, they were limited to their activities. Women were to be seen and not heard, or so men thought. Women were present in sports, as far back as 1500 b.c. Here they did such things as fight bulls and wrestle other women. But it was not until the 1930's that women really began to present their athletic abilities to society. From that decade on, women have been slowly increasing their interest and participation in sports. Amelia Earhart, in 1932, flew solo across the Atlantic Ocean. This helped dispel the myths of the lack of bravery, confidence, skil
Thus, the girls wore skirts, make-up, long hair, and had to dress and act feminine even off the baseball field. And so the discrimination continued. She became the youngest female world champion at the age of only fourteen years old. For instance, many more age, sex and race barriers were broke, as well as the combining of male and female athletes into many sports. However, this was not the attitude of Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic Games. His last words on the subject of women's sports was, "Let women do all the sports they wish---but not in public" (Guttmann 188). Although Amelia Earhart helped in the progression of female athletics, "there was no better female athlete than Mildred "Babe" Didrikson" (Rader 207). She tended goal for the International League's Atlanta Knights for two games. Much like her sister-in-law, Joyner-Kersee excelled as an African-American female athlete. Lifetime Entertainment Services, 1999.
Common topics in this essay:
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Atlanta Knights,
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Didrikson Rader,
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Korbut Olympic,
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billie jean king,
wilma rudolph,
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Acceptance Essays
