Where are the women?

The Olympic Games are the most famous and important sports festival around the world. Both, Summer and Winter Games are held every four years. The Olympics started about 2000 years ago in Olympia, Greece. That is why they named it the Olympics. The games were held in honor of the god Zeus and the purpose was for young men to show their qualities.

Before the Olympic Games in Paris (1900), women were not allowed to participate in the Olympics. Only Greek men were allowed and they had to be naked, because that was the only manner to check their gender. For the women it was not allowed to go outside and that is why it was not possible to compete or even watch the games. Except for unmarried girls and virgins, they were allowed to only watch the spectacle. Men took their eligible daughters to the events to go for husband-hunting. When any other women did go to this Olympic sports game anyway, they were murdered.

The Greek woman ‘Kalipateira’ was so eager to see her son, who was a boxer, she was dressed like a trainer. When he won his match, she ran to him, lost her cape and at that moment that everybody saw that she was a woman. Because her son had won the game, she was not punished but from 1928 women were allowed to participate in a team. From 1952, women were also allowed to participate individually.

Women and the Olympics

Athens 1896 - the first edition of the modern Olympic Games, no women competed.
Paris 1900 - for the first time in history, eleven women were allowed to compete in tennis and golf. Charlotte Cooper was the first woman who won a golden medal!
Stockholm 1912 - alsow swimming was allowed for women. Except American women, because America did not allow its female athletes to practise sport activities without long skirts. This edition, the first golden medal in wimming was secured by a woman!
Amsterdam 1928 - women did compete in track and field events, but till 1960 it was banned again, because a lot of women did not survive very well.
Los Angeles 1984 - shooting sports for women were allowed.
Sydney 2000 - the strongest Olympic women could show their skills, because weightlifting was allowed for the first time.

Fortunately, women can now just participate without subordination. Meanwhile, there is a new rule that new sports only have a chance to gain Olympic status when they are practiced by both men and women.

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