The growth of girls sports has been on a major incline, especially in male dominated sports.

Sports like wrestling, football, rugby, and weightlifting seen as predominantly male have now created programs for girls not only to join but to succeed breaking down barriers and reaching new opportunities for young girls. While it might seem like women have always had a place in sports, that is not the case. Women participating in sports is relatively new, even in sports you thought were fair game. 

Figure skating started to get more popular around the 1770s, women only started in the early 1900s, with Madge Syers becoming the first woman to compete in the world figure skating championships in 1902. Women only started to be more active in sports and gaining careers from it in the 1900s, prior to that it was only men having careers in sports. 

F1 began its Official World Championship in 1950, women only began to compete in 1958 and in the 1958 French Grand Prix, Maria Teresa de Filippis was barred by a race director who told her, “The only helmet a woman should wear is the one at the hairdresser’s”. 

While we think women in sports is normal, it is recent, starting mostly around the 1900s, and if that does not seem recent enough, we can look into contact sports. Women have always experienced sexism, especially in sports but specifically, contact sports. 

Due to the sexism in female contact sports, it has set them back. The UFC’s female divisions started in 2013, 13 years ago. The NCAAs, an organization for US college sports and some of the most followed and televised championships, in 2025, just a year ago made Women’s wrestling an official NCAA championship sport. Allowing girls to compete not only in high school but to compete in D1, D2, and D3 programs. Women have always tried to get their foot in the door with contact sports like Haley Van Voorhis, a former college football player known for being one of the first women to play a position other than kicker in NCAA history. In ice hockey, Manon Rhéaume, first and only woman to play in an NHL game. There are plenty more women who have stepped into these male dominated sports and created a path for women to follow. 

With the more media attention women get in sports like flag football, wrestling, facing, ect.., they inspire the younger generation to see someone just like them and believe they can do it too. When younger girls see representation of themselves in sports they thought they could not or were not allowed to do, it creates a sort of pride and feeling of capability, giving them the confidence to try it out. With women in male dominated sports, it changes the idea of what a woman is. Seeing women in contact sports with aggression teaches not only kids but other generations that being feminine can be strong, competitive and tough. The growth of girls in these fields is important and a stepping stone but, there are still setbacks. 

There is not much support with girls in traditionally male sports with less attention and underlying sexism. Girls are still having to prove themselves and work twice as hard just to still get less recognition than male sports. With girls on co-ed or boys teams due to not enough attention of the female divisions, they begin to face sexism early on with physical and mental mistreatment. Many women being told they didn’t belong by coaches, superiors, teammates, and even friends and family as well as getting physically hurt for just competing in a male dominated sport is more common than thought. The importance of women in sports is key to new generations playing what their heart desires without judgement or prejudice. Sports with women’s divisions like lacrosse, ice hockey, field hockey, and another up and coming sport for girls, flag football, have all created a way for girls to play the sports they love but they differ. 

Changing rules and ultimately the entire game for girls in these sports have created even more systematic sexism like, not being allowed to body check or limiting contact or like no contact at all in flag football. It changes the game and while it is a step in the right direction, the steps need to get bigger.

 Girls have been waiting for this opportunity for decades and as we can see with the incline of girls wrestling and flag football in our own school, they are not going to let this new opportunity pass them by. The rise of girls in these male dominated sports is more than just participation, it’s a path for change, light at the end of the tunnel. It redefines athletics for girls to step onto mats, rings and fields that were not open before, giving hope to young girls that they can compete at a higher level, get treated just the same, and be given their flowers. As this progresses the future of sports is reshaping, becoming more supportive and inclusive of skill rather than focusing on gender.