Elitorial: Get used to women in sports

In 1971, it affected one in 27 high school girls. By 1994, that figure was one in three. It finds its way into the livesof women from all places and backgrounds. What is this epidemic sweeping the nation? It is the participation of women in athletics.

Today, women's athletics are more popular than ever. With over 2.25 million high school girls and more than 110,000 collegiate women participating in various sports, the level of athletic involvement in the generation of women 25 years and younger is four times more than in any previous generation.

What has ignited this influx of women into sports? Over the last several decades, it gradually has become more acceptable for females to be involved in athletics. Now, female participation is not only accepted but encouraged. Newfound support is pouring in from a variety of sources, including the media, schools, and mothers who themselves did not have the sports opportunities available to girls today. The result is a general female population that has begun to play sports at a younger age, enabling athletes to raise the quality of their performance to a greater level and making women's sports more exciting to watch.

This has captured greater fan interest, in turn inspiring more kids to cultivate their talents, and so the numbers continue to increase.

Another part of this movement stems from the recognition that sports can serve as an important element in a female's development. Eighty percent of women cited as key leaders in Fortune 500 companies participated in sports during their childhood and classified themselves as having been "tomboys." That is no coincidence.

To master a sport, an athlete must forge a connection between her mental and physical self. She develops the qualities of dedication and motivation which are necessary as they devote countless hours to conditioning and improving skill level. Teammates and coaches provide a network of support for an athlete, which helps the individual to build confidence and self esteem, and to develop communication skills with others. People have realized that the same reasons that young males have always been encouraged to participate in athletics apply to females as well.

It is a time of new opportunity for women in every sport. With the new attitude towards women's athletics and the introduction of Title IX, participation is up in the usual active female areas.

But women have gone above and beyond their call, pervading every realm of the sports world. They can be found on football and wrestling teams and in the boxing ring.

Women on the diamond no longer play only softball. An all-women's baseball team, the Colorado Silver Bullets, is competing in the minor leagues, and it might not be too long before a woman is seen stepping up to the plate in the majors.

The new trends in athletics were perhaps best demonstrated by the phenomenal popularity of women's events in the Olympics. Americans flocked to see their new sports heroes compete in gymnastics, soccer, and softball. People vied for seats to see the Dream Team hoop it up, and I don't mean the one with Shaq and Penny.

The interest in the U.S. Olympic Team made the once-only-dreamed-about possibility of a women's professional basketball league become a reality. In addition to the new women's American Basketball League, the NBA is creating a sister WNBA, which will host eight franchises in cities across the nation.

The media has played a vital role in the emergence of women's sports. Males have always been able to follow the accomplishments of their sports heroes through the barrage of coverage on television, magazines, and the newspapers. It has not always been so for women. In the 52 issues of Sports Illustrated that came out between February of 1993 to February of 1994, six women made the front cover. The first was in a bathing suit. Monica Seles was the second, sporting tennis whites and a knife in her back. The next two were widows of baseball players. Number five was tennis player Mary Pierce, who was recognized more for the exploits of her crazed father than for her prowess on the court. The last was Nancy Kerrigan; need I say more?

But the times, they are a-changing. The 1996 Sports Illustrated Olympic preview issue featured a fold-out of the women's basketball team on the cover. Media coverage of women's events and individuals has increased all around and has helped turn some of the more prominent athletes from mere players to role models and heroes.

Just as young boys can revere Michael Jordan or Ken Griffey, Jr., girls now have Lisa Leslie and Dot Richardson. People often see and think only what the media tells them.

Now, the media has enabled the nation to have a complete picture of these women, and aspiring athletes are given heroes with whom they can more easily identify and emulate.

While the media coverage between the sexes is still far from equal, that has to be expected. Most major men's sports like baseball, basketball, and soccer draw a larger crowd than their women's counterparts do, and they probably always will.

But there is something to be gained by watching women's sports. For the most part, women's sports have retained a purity that many men's sports have lost amidst a tangle of salary caps, contracts, agents, and hype.

Women athletes do not receive the monetary compensation that men do. The games are played they way they are supposed to be played. The women meet their challenges for the sake of the accomplishment and for the love of their respective sports.