Celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day by encouraging your daughters, sisters, nieces and every young girl in your life to participate in a sport they love.
As a kid I was very lucky, my father took the 3 of us kids to see minor league baseball, the King and His Court (a traveling 4-man fastpitch softball team with a history that dates back to WW2), Georgetown & American University women’s basketball, women’s softball, ice hockey and many more sporting events. I enjoyed every moment from the time I was 4 and asking minor league ball players for a signed baseball to the time I played on the very field in Washington, DC that the King’s team and some of the best female softball players played on.
Sports gave me direction, college scholarships, and more opportunities than I can possibly list here. I took to track & field by age 5 and later softball, basketball and soccer. I was fairly shy (hey at least I spoke, unlike my sister at that age 😉 but very comfortable and confident when I stepped onto the field, court or a track. I learned many lessons about teamwork, winning, disappointment and working hard to earn my playing time. I stepped on an airplane for the first time (for a summer travel softball team trip to AZ – where we ended up playing Lisa Fernandez’s team) and later learned to juggle college classes, practice, road trips and injuries.
I’ve been so fortunate for the opportunities participating in sports gave me and the lessons learned that I still use today. I hope to pass those lessons on to other young girls and create more opportunities for females to participate. To get more involved, check out the National Women & Girls in Sports events across the country and, don’t forget to encourage the young girls in your life!
For Events across the country and an outstanding video put together by Ann Gaffigan, check out this page.
Great Blog i was wondering would some woman understand sports better if it were broken down or explained in great detail. I try to help readers in general by using politics. I want to really cover the WNBA in full this season to help with exposure.
Hi there, have you seen http://www.womentalksports.com? There are a few WNBA bloggers on this incredible network! I think that may be part of it – some women just don’t understand certain aspects of the sport but then they’ll watch mens sports because it’s more of a crowd thing to do (gather at a bar, go to a Super Bowl party etc.). As far as basketball, I don’t think any woman who hasn’t played or watched growing up totally gets it. And I think events at women’s sports will help – great halftime shows, giveaways etc. for an overall great experience.