The Battle over Women’s Sports: Modern History of Women’s Sport

The Battle over Women’s Sports (full series)
Modern History of Women’s Sport | What Is a Woman?
Betrayal | What’s Next?

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Summary: In simpler times, no one asked what a woman was, but the question was instead, what shape should women’s sports take in America? Women today often take our freedoms and opportunities for granted, especially in women’s sports. Not until the passage of Title IX in 1972 did women’s sports shift from being a neglected stepchild of organized sports to a formidable sister standing on par with men’s sports. Yet today Title IX is being used to crush women’s sports.

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What is a woman? The question was asked long before the modern era of trans athletes breaking women’s sports records. The 2010 film Berlin 36 tells the story of Dora Ratjen. The plot centers around a real-life famous women’s high jumper, Gretel Bergmann, whom the German Nazi authorities wanted to replace because of her Jewish heritage with Marie Ketteler. The problem, however, was that Marie was really a man. The idea was that the pride of the Nazis led them to cheat by pretending this man was a woman and thus guaranteed their victory. The character of Marie is based on the real historical figure, Dora Ratjen. In 1966, Time magazine ran a story that claimed Dora, now Hermann, “tearfully confessed that the Nazis had forced him to pose as a woman ‘for the sake of the honor and glory of Germany.’” Berlin 36’s fictionalized treatment of Dora Ratjen was based largely on the Time magazine reporting.

In reality, Ratjen won a gold medal in 1938 and broke the women’s high jump record in 1939. After the discovery of Ratjen’s trans controversy, the gold medal was returned, and the IAAF rescinded the world record in 1957.

Jump to the 2024 Olympics, and two intersex athletes competed in women’s boxing, Imane Khelif and Yang Liu, with Khelif winning the gold medal. Khelif and Liu failed to pass the gender tests administered by the International Boxing Association (IBA) due to the presence of XY (male) chromosomes, but the International Olympic Committee doesn’t acknowledge the tests because it severed ties with the IBA in 2023 for corruption and other reasons.

Modern History of Women’s Sport

In simpler times, no one asked what a woman was, but the question was instead, what shape should women’s sports take in America? Women today often take our freedoms and opportunities for granted, especially in women’s sports. What was once reserved for men’s clubs and the wealthy has grown into an institution filled with rags-to-riches stories for both male and female athletes. Take the Williams sisters, for example—Serena Williams, with an estimated net worth of $300 million, and her sister Venus, with $90 million. If you had told Americans in the early 1900s that two Black women would build multimillion-dollar fortunes playing tennis, they probably would have laughed—or even asked, “What is tennis?”

The history of organized women’s sports in America is a story of gradual progress, evolving from restricted participation in the 19th century to the rise of global female sports stars like Venus and Serena Williams today.

In the 19th century, women’s physical activity was constrained by societal norms that viewed strenuous exercise as harmful to femininity. This was a time when American women were still wearing tight corsets and heavy skirts down to their ankles. Women’s participation in sports was often limited to “graceful” and “ladylike” activities like horseback riding, croquet, and archery—sports that could be done in a skirt. However, I would argue that one of the most graceful and beautiful displays of athleticism I’ve seen this year was Sydney McLaughlin winning gold in the 100-meter hurdles. It wasn’t until the 20th century that organized sports started to form for women. The first female Olympians were allowed to participate in the Paris Games of 1900. However, they were relegated to a few events, such as tennis and golf. Women weren’t hiking up their skirts and charging down the track, but the 1900 Olympic Games was one of the first major sports events in which women could participate.

With establishments like the Women’s Amateur Athletic Federation (WAAF), founded in the 1920s, there was growing interest in sports playing among women. However, they were still largely excluded from the mainstream collegiate-level and professional-level teams. Women’s sports were mainly seen as recreational rather than competitive.

In the mid-20th century, women’s participation in sports continued to grow. During World War II, the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) was created to keep baseball alive while men served in the war. This was one of America’s first professional women’s sports leagues, though it was dissolved after the war. Women’s basketball also began spreading in schools and colleges, albeit with modified rules to make it less physically demanding.

Title IX

But it wasn’t until the passage of Title IX in 1972 that women’s sports shifted from being a neglected stepchild of organized sports to a formidable sister standing on par with men’s sports. This federal law mandated that any educational institution receiving federal funding must provide equal opportunities for men and women, including in sports programs.

Title IX transformed women’s sports by increasing funding, participation, and opportunities for female high school and collegiate athletes. Following its enactment, the number of women participating in high school and college sports exploded, leading to greater visibility and competitiveness in women’s athletics. This landmark legislation was a catalyst for the continued growth of organized women’s sports and the development of future female athletes, or non-athletes like myself who tried to get on a team but failed. Nevertheless, the opportunity was there.

As the impact of Title IX spread through high schools and colleges, professional opportunities for women also expanded. A year after Title IX was passed, Billie Jean King famously won the “Battle of the Sexes” match in 1973, helping to elevate women’s tennis to national prominence. In fact, women’s tennis is one of the few organized sports today that has comparable audience demand to its male counterpart, thanks to matches like this and the rise of female tennis superstars.

Fast forward another 25 years, and we see the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) establishment in 1996. Today, we have huge stars in the WNBA, like Caitlyn Clark, who are bringing new eyes to the sport and breaking WNBA audience attendance records everywhere she plays.

This summer at the Paris 2024 Olympics marked the first time in history that the number of male and female athletes was equal. Out of an estimated 10,500 athletes, 50% were women and 50% were men. This is a significant milestone in the history of the Olympic Games, as previous games saw a disparity between the number of male and female competitors. Coincidentally, the first Olympic games that allowed women were held in Paris, and the last Olympic games that saw full gender equality were also held in Paris.

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In the next installment, the definition of “woman” becomes a battleground.

Source: https://capitalresearch.org/article/the-battle-over-womens-sports-part-1/