The Time has Come for Women's Wrestling

The Time has Come for Women's Wrestling

Should women be able to compete in the NCAA sport of wrestling? There are countless numbers of men who are against co-ed wrestling stating that women do not posses the athletic ability, strength, or aggression to wrestle with men. The truth is that the only limiting factor keeping women out of the sport are those stated in Title IX and NCAA.

Women have struggled for many years to create their own identity in the male dominant sport of wrestling. Wrestling began with the early Egyptian and Babylonian civilizations who depict wrestlers using most of the holds known to the present-day sport. In ancient Greece, wrestling occupied a prominent place in legend and literature. Wrestling competitions were and still are brutal in many aspects due to injuries caused during a bout. Around 1928 North Americans developed the collegiate-style wrestling which is practiced in high schools and universities today. In the 1980s women began to wrestle in increasing numbers, and the first women's world championship was held in 1987.

The women's collegiate movement is growing. In 1993, the University of Minnesota-Morris was the first college in the nation to sponsor women's wrestling as an official varsity sport. Since that time women's programs have been developed, and not to mention countless numbers of women who have joined their collegiate men's programs despite the limitations placed on them.

Wrestling is a sport in which two contestants try to force each other's shoulders to the floor, thus scoring a pin and winning the match. Points are awarded for various holds and techniques during the bout, and if neither wrestler can pin the other within the time limit, the competitor with the most points ...

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...ant with every sport. This is not to say that Title IX is unjust, but it is certainly not sufficient.

It is just a matter of time before wrestling will be an accepted sport like ice hockey, karate, and judo. At the collegiate level women's wrestling is an ideal choice for creating new opportunities for women. In fact, women's wrestling fits the NCAA criteria for emerging sports programs yet it has not been sponsored as a NCAA sponsored sport. Women's wrestling, as with most sports that are not traditionally contested by females, needs pioneers to challenge the system. Those pioneers already exsist at the colligate level. The only thing missing is the support and backing from politicians who are able to push forth legislation to make the necessary changes. That support could turn into NCAA sponsorship, but not before more teams are formed at the collegiate level.