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Written by: Kate Pietruszkiewicz As we near the end of this years’ Winter Olympics, let’s look at all of the record-breaking and incredible feats we’ve seen… We started off with three-time Olympic speed skater Brittany Blowe as the country’s flag bearer. Soon after, Julia Marino won the first Team USA medal of the 2022 Olympics, silver in slopestyle snowboarding. Chloe Kim, another American snowboarder, won the half-pipe event, which made her the first woman to win back-to-back gold medals in the event’s history. From 21-year-old Kim, to 36-year-old snowboard-cross winner Lindsey Jacobellis, Team USA dominated the medal count (3rd currently) and the history book. Among our competing athletes was the first Indigenous woman for US hockey and the first Black Olympic athletes in skeleton and speed skating. It’s so cool to watch these women excel in their sports, but guess what? None of these accomplishments would be possible without the trailblazing people that paved the way. The first woman to ever play in a PGA golf event, Babe Didrikson Zaharias, and Toni Stone, the girl referred to as “the female Jackie Robinson” were both unheard of in their eras. That didn’t stop them though; Babe was selected as best female athlete of the early 20th century and Toni earned a second-base(wo)man role in the place of a male hall-of-famer. To add to that list, we couldn’t forget to mention the famed Billie Jean King who was the oldest tennis Grand Slam semi-finalist and is the famed winner of the “Battle of the Sexes'' in which she beat a male player head-to-head. These laudable ladies and so many less-recognized ones have all led the charge of girls into sports, not just in the winter, but all seasons of the year. These women fought through so much just to play themselves, but they opened the door for our generation to do so without judgment. So next time you are lacking the self-confidence for a tryout, a practice, or a game, try looking up Nadia Comaneci - gymnastics, Victoria Roche - Little League, Nancy Liberman - basketball, Florence Griffith-Joyner - track and field, Mia Hamm - soccer, or Manon Rheaume - hockey. If they can do it, so can you! Check in next week for an update on the current leading ladies of the sports world! “Our Favorite Team USA Moments from the 2022 Winter Olympics Thus Far.” Team USA, 2022, www.teamusa.org/News/2022/February/13/Our-Favorite-Team-USA-Moments-From-The-2022-Winter-Olympics-Thus-Far. Accessed 16 Feb. 2022. ESPN.com. “Notable Female Trailblazers through Sports History.” ESPN.com, ESPN, 6 Mar. 2020, www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/28839500/notable-female-trailblazers-sports-history. Accessed 16 Feb. 2022.
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Written by: Kate Pietruszkiewicz
Today marks the opening of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, the 23rd one in history. The Olympic games are like a huge festival of sports, uniting athletes around the world to compete. In Beijing this year, there will be 91 countries represented by 2,871 eager men and women. The athletes come to participate in a variety of events; 109 exactly, that are divided into 15 disciplines, or groups. All of them - Alpine Skiing, Biathlon, Bobsleigh, Cross-Country Skiing, Curling, Figure Skating, Freestyle Skiing, Ice-Hockey, Luge, Nordic Combined, Short Track Speed Skating, Skeleton, Ski Jumping, Snowboarding, and general Speed Skating - will be available to watch on the NBC channels from the opening ceremonies today, February 4th, until the closing ceremonies on the 20th. While close to half of the athletes participating in the games this year are women, it wasn’t always that way. The first official Olympics were held in 1896 and when women got to compete at the next go around in Paris 1900, they only made up 2% of the 997 total athletes. Not only have they made a large leap just to participate, the girls have also proved themselves to be avid athletes in all of the sports offered, not just the 5 that were initially offered to their gender. As of the 1991 International Olympic Committee's statement, any sport added to the Games is added for both men and women. There are many women to look out for in this year’s winter edition, so make sure to watch the sure-to-be exciting performances of Chloe Kim (Snowboarding), Maame Biney (Short Course Speed Skating), Alysa Liu (Figure Skating), Mikaela Shiffrin (Alpine Skiing), and Elana Meyers Taylor (Bobsledding). Look out for next Friday's update where we’ll go into some more important women in sports; the ones making their mark now as well as the trailblazers throughout history. “Winter Olympic Sports List | Olympics.com.” Olympics.com, 2022, olympics.com/en/sports/winter-olympics. Accessed 4 Feb. 2022. “When Did Women First Compete in the Olympic Games.” International Olympic Committee, 23 Nov. 2021, olympics.com/ioc/faq/history-and-origin-of-the-games/when-did-women-first-compe te-in-the-olympic-games#:~:text=Go-,When%20did%20women%20first%20compete% 20in%20the%20Olympic%20Games%3F,to%20gender%20equality%20in%20sport.. Accessed 4 Feb. 2022. |
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