Get & Stay in the Game: Celebrating National Girls & Women in Sports Day

On February 2, 2022, we recognize the National Girls and Women in Sports Day. As a former (maybe still current?) athlete and a coach of girls in sports, I have a particular affinity for celebrating the power of sports and its impact over the short and long term. This year we also celebrate the 50th anniversary of Title IX, the legislation that called for equal participation in programs that were federally funded, resulting in a breakthrough for women in sports.

Sports can have serious benefits over the short and long term. Research from the Women’s Sports Foundation shows that girls who participate in sports experience, “improved physical and mental health; academic achievement; and increased levels of body esteem, confidence, and mastery.”

Sports promotes healthy competition and learning to win AND lose with grace. Sports helps to teach grit, risk taking, and resilience. These characteristics and skills are critical for professional growth and success.

I have seen these characteristics develop in my players over the years. I have watched them dig deep to come back from a deficit. I see them give themselves and their teammates grace when they are trying, but maybe not always hitting the mark. They build each other up, push each other to be better, and hold each other accountable. Year after year, I have had the privilege of watching them get better and find more joy in their skills.

But by age 14, girls drop out of sports at twice the rate of boys. The reasons range from lack of access (girls have 1.3 million fewer opportunities to play high school sports than boys) to social stigma (girls drop out of sports because they feel they are crossing gender boundaries) to lack of positive role models (“[o]nly 41% of women's collegiate teams are coached by women, and only 28% of youth sports coaches are women.”).

This attrition has impact because of the correlation sports has on women’s professional success. 80% of female Fortune 500 executives played competitive sports at some time in their lives. And 94% of women in the C-suite played sports, which shows that many of the most powerful women in business learned their tools for success on the playing field before they entered the board room.

If you have a young person at home, encourage them to get or stay in the game. And tune into your own inner athlete — put on your game face and let your competitiveness and risk taking shine at work. Even if you didn’t grow up playing sports, it’s never too late to find an activity that you enjoy and to experience the benefits of sports. Finally, just like in sports, a great coach can help you learn new skills, develop your game plan, and improve your performance. If you want some help getting improving your game, put me in, I’m ready!