The Olympics are about dreams and aspiration, about overcoming obstacles and about fairness. Title IX is why I am an Olympian and it's why the women of Team USA continue to earn the most medals at the Olympic Games.Īnd our women aren't just better than their competition - they also outcompete our men, winning six more medals in Rio than the men.īeyond the medal tables, women are emblematic of the highest ideals of the Olympic movement. It's still a bit surprising that it took an act of Congress to kick-start the athletic equality movement, but it sure did work. Before Title IX was enacted just over 300,000 women and girls played high school or college sports. Title IX stated that "no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, or denied the benefits of, or be subject to discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving federal assistance."Įven though collegiate athletics weren't explicitly mentioned, the positive impact of those words on women in sports was transformative. One of them is the landmark Title IX legislation, which was signed 45 years ago this month. There are many factors that led our nation to discard old biases and doubts and the role that women should only applaud athletes rather than become dominant athletes ourselves. It's affordable and it's accessible - you can start running anywhere. Running is a perfect entryway for young women interested in sport. In fact, I ran six miles the day my son was born. I'm a 60-year-old mother of two and I run close to 70 miles a week. That we'd be unable to bear children, that we'd become "old too soon." They used to say women just weren't built to run. The girl's track teams weren't given varsity status and I wasn't allowed to compete for more than a mile out of concern for "my delicate ladylike" frame.Īnd because I chose to practice with the boys, my high school refused to give me the school's most valuable athlete award despite winning the state championship. So how much did my gender matter? A lot, apparently. It was never really about beating them, I was simply racing the clock.
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