WEST CHESTER, Pa. - West Chester University’s female athletes played host to members of the YMCA of the Brandywine Valley for its annual National Girls and Women in Sport Day, Thursday night. Girls in grades 2-6 ventured down to the South Campus of West Chester University in Sturzebecker Health Science Center for the event.
This year’s event celebrates the 40th anniversary of Title IX; the landmark civil rights law that requires both genders to have equal opportunities to participate in sports and receive the benefits of competitive athletics. The success and impact of Title IX is evident by the number of girls in attendance each year, all of whom do not know what it is like NOT to have the same opportunities as their male counterparts.
The athletes of West Chester’s women’s sports teams participated with the girls in tennis, basketball, soccer, relay races, and gymnastics. After running around and playing hard, the girls were treated to a pizza dinner and left with a West Chester Athletics poster, a ticket to a women’s basketball game and other goodies.
West Chester Athletics and the YMCA of the Brandywine have formed a partnership for this event in order to emphasize the importance of staying strong and playing sports for girls of all ages.
National Girls and Women in Sports Day (NGWSD) began in 1987 as a day to remember Olympic volleyball player Flo Hyman for her athletic achievements and her work to assure equality for women's sports. Hyman died of Marfan's Syndrome in 1986 while competing in a volleyball tournament in Japan. Since that time, NGWSD has evolved into a day to acknowledge the past and recognize current sports achievements, the positive influence of sports participation, and the continuing struggle for equality and access for women in sports
