I was not planning on writing about this topic today, but in honor of National Women in Sports Day I want to talk about what being a female athlete means to me. I also want to touch on how far female athletics has come, but keeping in mind that we have so much farther to go.
I have always been an athlete. Both of my parents were athletes and coaches and they knew the lessons in athletics were important for all of their kids to learn. So I started playing soccer basically when I could walk. My first league I played in when I was four years old and I completely fell in love. My dream was to be like Mia Hamm and Julie Foudy. My room was covered in soccer posters and I wanted to eat and breathe soccer. My first memory of playing soccer was actually on the playground when I was in kindergarten. I was the only girl that played soccer during recess and the boys could only keep up when they pulled on my long ponytail. The would run up behind me, tug on my hair, and steal the ball away. Eventually, I got pissed that I kept losing the ball, so the next guy that grabbed my hair got a swift punch to the guy. After that none of the boys messed with my hair.
That was the first time in my life where I felt like I had control of a situation and I was not afraid to stand up for myself. There was a confidence that I had on the field that I did not have anywhere else. If you are a girl you can relate to this, but let's be honest growing up in hard. Especially those middle and high school days when you feel like the whole world is out to get you. But when I was playing the sport that I loved, it did not matter if I was feeling or what people were telling me that day, because the second I stepped on the court I felt powerful. Some people probably watched me play throughout my career and thought, "wow that girl is cocky" and honestly they are right. When I was playing I did not care who I was playing against, my only goal was to be the best athlete on the court.
In female athletics there is no room for self-doubt, because unlike male athletes we don't have the whole world telling us that we are good. There are not a million fans at our games or reporters waiting for interviews, instead we have to learn to pick ourselves up. That confidence has to come from within, even on the days that we feel the least confident in ourselves.
The confidence that I felt on the court has carried over to the rest of my life. Athletics taught me to never apologize for something I did not do, to take ownership of my mistakes, and most importantly, to stand up for myself. I learned to have a voice, which is so crucial for young women to learn. I am so grateful that I grew up in a time where I watched athletes such as Mia Hamm, Serena Williams, and Maria Sharapova. These strong, empowered women broke barriers for all female athletes.
If you are a young, female athlete don't let anyone tell you who you can or should be. You take the confidence you have on the field/court and let it guide you through life. Now if you are a parent and have a young girl than push for these strong female athletes be your child's role model. Show them that women are powerful and a force to be reckoned with.
Cover image from: https://youth1.com/youth-sports/enjoy-celebration-national-girls-women-sports-day-our-home-page