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Jul 1, 776
First Olympics
The ancient Olympics were rather different from the modern Games. There were fewer events, and only free men who spoke Greek could compete. No women were allowed to participate in the first Olympics, unless they entered horses in the equestrian events -
Where It All Started
Significance of women in sports ranges back until 776 B.C when ancient Greek Olympics were held and women were not only banned from participation, but from being spectators as well. Any noted participation of women in sports was not until 1811 when women's first golf and tennis teams were formed. Several years later, Matthew Vassar opened Vassar College with a special school for women in physical education only including physical accomplishments for grace and "bodily strength" -
Blondes vs Brunettes Rivalry Begins
In 1866, Vassar college was the first school to have two amateur baseball teams, the "blondes" and "brunettes." Almost ten years later, on September 11, 1875, the two teams played for the first time publicly, and money being charged for entry at the gates. This sparked a future for women in sports that would be considered more rigorous, yet proved women were fully capable. -
Wellesley College
Wellesley College, a college for women was chartered in 1870 opened 1875. Upon opening, the college required physical education as part of the curriculum. -
AAU Forms
In 1888, due to women beginning to participate in amateur sports, the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) was formed for men and women to establish standard and uniformity within amateur sports. -
Women's Basketball
Women were not active in intercollegiate sports until basketball was introduced at Smith College in 1892. The first collegiate game was played on March 21st 1983. The freshman class played the sophomore class. At this time, women in sports were not socially accepted so men were not allowed in the gym to watch. After Smith College introduced women’s basketball, it spread quickly throughout across the country. -
First Modern Olympics
First modern Olympics took place on April 6, 1896. Since the games started in Ancient Greece, the first modern game was held in Athens. Although this game was reborn, not many rules had changed. The new rules were like the old ones. The participants were males with wealth. These games were for gentlemen. Males in the working class were not considered gentlemen. Women participation in the Games was not allowed. -
Women Join the Olympics
In 1900, women participated in the first Olympics, but only in tennis and golf. It was not until the 1908, gym, tennis, archery, and figure skating were added, and then 1912, swimming was added as well. Although this was a big step internationally for women participating in the Olympics, zero American female athletes participated because it was frowned upon. In 1914, the American Olympic committee formally opposed women from participating in any event, except for floor exercises. -
From 1/3 to 1/2
Before 1914, women's basketball was only allowed to be played one-third of the full court. However, in 1914 the ruled changed and half-court play was now allowed in women's basketball. Full court play was not allowed in women's basketball until the 1970s. Also, at this time most states did not allow a player more than two dribbles before they had to pass or shoot. -
Aileen Riggen
Aileen Riggen, who was only 14 at the time, went on to win the first women's Olympic springboard diving competition in Antwerp, Belgium. It is here that Riggen set several records. At the time she was America's youngest ever Gold medalist. In addition, she was also the smallest, measuring 4 foot 7 inches, and weighing 65 pounds. Later on in 1924, she competed in the summer Olympics in Paris and became the only woman to win medals for both swimming and diving. -
Gertrude swims the Channel
Gertrude Swims the English Channel 1926 On August 6, 1926 Gertrude Ederle was the first woman to swim the English Channel and complete the race. The record for this race, which was set by a man, held its place for over 50 years. Gertrude was a very young and powerful swimmer. In this race she set a new record almost two hours faster than the old one. She won first with a time of 14 hours and 31 minutes. -
Jackie Mitchell and Baseball
March 28, 1931 was the date when Jackie Mitchell signed a contract with the Chattanooga Lookouts baseball team. She was a very talented pitcher. She was very young she was taught the "Drop Pitch". This pitch would start at one level and then drop down a little bit before being hit. On April 2, 1931 her team played against the New York Yankees. On that same day she struck out Babe Ruth. -
The Ice Queen
As a well rounded athlete, Sonja Henie was mostly known for her remarkable achievements at such a young age. She had won the Norwegian championship when she was ten years old, and competed in the Winter Olympics two months short of her twelfth birthday. From 1927 to 1936, Henie won ten consecutive titles and was the only skater to win three Olympic gold medals. -
Youngest swimmer in the 1960 Olympics
Donna De Varona was the youngest swimmer to compete in the 1960 Olympics. In her Olympic career she brought home 2 Gold medals. But more importantly she broke 18 world records. Even with all of her success she was not able to get a swimming scholarship to go to college. She became one of the first woman sports news broadcasters. This opened many doors for women in this field of sports. -
Triple Gold Medalist
Wilma Rudolph became the first woman to win three gold medals in track and field in a single Olympics. She paved the way for women to be successful in track and field. As an American she brought home three golds and a bronze for the United States. She came from a rough background. She was the 20th child of 22 brothers and sisters. She also had many diseases as a child that resulted in many different leg braces. She is an inspiration to many people, and a great woman to pave the way. -
Nixon signs Title IX
Title IX was signed in to law on June 23, 1972. This new law mostly effected high school and collegiate sports and really included race, religion and national origin. It took many executive orders to include women in this law. This law states that high schools and colleges could not discriminate against race, religion, ethnicity or gender if the sport or activity was federally funded. This lead to women being able to compete at the same levels as men in sports. -
Battle of the Sexes
The battle of the sexes was competed on September 20, 1973. This was a nationally televised and was a best of five event. this match was highly promoted. There was so much buzz around this match that it was compared to a prize-winning fight. King won this match in 3 games. She beat Riggs 6-4, 6-3, 6-3. This event brought national attention to women in sports. -
Perfect 10
Uneven Bars Perfect 10 Nadia Comaneci was 15 years old and competeing in the 1976 Olympics. She was the first gymnast to ever recieve a perfect 10 in an Olympic event. In her career she won 5 gold medals, 3 silver medals, and 1 bonze. She was also named one of the athletes of the century in 2000. She was an amazing gymnast that gained the respect of people all over the world. -
Jackie Joyner-Kersee breaks World Record
Joyner competed in 4 Olympics over her career and won 3 gold medals, 1 silver medal, and 2 bronze medals. She as an amazing athlete in her sport of track and field. She competed in the woman's heptatholon and in the long jump. She broke many world records in her career and set an amazing precedent for many woman to come into track and field and be very successful. -
On a Broken Ankle
At the age of 19 Kerri Strug was a part of something much bigger than herself. She was a member of the magnificent seven. The magnificent seven was a group of elite gymnast that won the all-around gold medal in the 1996 Olympics. The biggest thing that she is remembered for is the way she performed her second vault on an injured ankle and still stuck the landing. By doing this the women of the magnificent seven became gold medal winners at the 1996 summer games in Atlanta, Ga. -
Women's Ice Hockey at the Olympics
In 1998, the Olympics added a new sport to the medals. This sport was women's ice hockey. The Canadian women were favored for the gold at the 1998 winter Olympics all the way until the last match. The United States was up against the fierce Canadian rivals but at the end of the day the Americans took home the gold. Not only did the women on this American hockey team get to compete at the Olympic level they won the first ever women's ice hockey gold medal! -
Sister, Sister
Venus vs. Serena The Williams sisters battled for the single's title in the U.S. Open. In fact, it was the first women's tennis final televised in prime time. Venus won her second consecutive US Open title, beating Serena 6-2, 6-4. Nearly 23 million people watched the match -
Go Lady Bears!!!
On April 3, 2012 Brittney Griner led Baylor's Lady Bears to winning the NCAA Championship with 26 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks in a 80-61 victory over Notre Dame. The Lady Bears finished the season undefeated with by winning 40-0, the best in its school's history. In particular, Griner won the 2012 AP player of the year and defense player of the year for the third consecutive year (2010 ,2011, and 2012).
