I was a tom boy growing up. I had a bowl cut, all my friends were boys, and I played lots and lots of sports. (this could also be due to my genetic lack of grace.) Can you guess which child is me?
If you guessed the child on the left, you are correct.
I believe that the way you play sports, and the sports you choose, say a lot about who you are and how you interact with people. I also think that sports give kids a safe space to work through bigger concepts like competition, working together, discipline, challenge and hard work.
I grew up in a generation where I felt, for the most part, on equal footing with boys. I didn't know what Title 9 was because I didn't need to. I had all the same opportunities and inclusions in sports as my counterparts. In 1996, when I graduated from high school, the Atlanta Summer Olympics were nicknamed the Title IX Olympics because it represented a generation of girls and women who had come to age after the legislation.
Today 93% of colleges offer women's soccer vs. 3% in 1977, the year before I was born.
It drops my jaw to think that 1967 was the first year that a woman ran in the Boston Marathon, and that the race organizer tried to chase her off the course.
Image from Buzz Feed
The reality for girls in sports today is much different. The Olympic Trials are here for swimming, track & field and gymnastics and there are of course women everywhere.
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But there are still kids, girls and boys, who don't get the opportunities and encouragement that they need to push them to explore hobbies and sports they are interested in. For them, there's the Youth Sports Fund.
From P&G and the USA Youth Sports Fund
The P&G|Team USA Youth Sports Fund will help moms raise happy, healthy kids by providing broader access to youth sports as part of P&G’s ‘Thank You Mom’ campaign. This is part of the company’s global effort to raise more than $5 million for youth sports. The P&G|Team USA Youth Sports Fund will benefit youth sports organizations around the country such as Make a Splash, YMCA and Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
You Can Help!
- Follow Thank You, Mom on Twitter: In honor of Olympic Trials, for every new @thankyoumom follower, P&G will donate $1 to the P&G Team USA Youth Sports Fund, up to $50,000.
- Redeem P&G brandSAVER coupons: In the Sunday July 1st paper, P&G is releasing their famous brandSAVER packed with coupons on some of our most popular brands. And for every coupon redeemed a donation will be made to the P&G Team USA Youth Sports Fund.
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