Women enjoy sports upswing in nation and here at WSU-O by Anne Lumaye
Will women take over sports? It almost seems they might. For many years the world of sports had been the exclusive domain of the male, with the female permitted only to watch. Today, however, women are off the beaches and on the field. Among the women of recent years who have stolen newspaper space from their male counterparts are Kathy Whitworth, Mickey Wright, and Peggy Sorenson in golf; Betsy Drake, exercise; Peggy Fleming, skating; and Marie Mulder in track and field.
The list of sports now open to women is seemingly endless, with only a few closed to women such as football, weight lifting, boxing, and the more vigorous sports which women do not wish to participate in.
Here at WSU-O, women have an opportunity to develop into the adult sports leader of tomorrow as they participate in field hockey, badminton, fencing, swimming, basketball, tennis, golf, dance, volleyball, track and field, softball, bowling, and archery.
However, until very recent years, “the so-called small-waisted, small footed, small-brained, damsel who prided herself on her health, who thought fainting interesting and hysterics fascinating,” is Eleanor Metheny, a contemporary philosopher of physical education, once said. She stated further, “The fainting hysterical maiden is now treated as a nervous patient, and in her place is that glowing happy creature who advocates ‘mens in corpore sano’ (a sound mind in a sound body)”.
The traditional concept of the universal inferiority of the female no longer holds. Throughout the first decade of this century there was growing evidence of the rights of women to participate in sports in and out of school. The program started as mild gymnastics which proved satisfactory. Then the women turned more vigorous open air sports which have been quite rewarding.
As the image of the dainty little lady gradually dies away, women are turning more toward sports and other activities which society had previously prohibited her from doing. Though she turns more to sports she does not do so to outdo nor imitate her brothers as some would have us believe. She does not run the danger of having professionalism creep into her athletics. She realizes that by developing her body and mind alike she reaches the highest development of true womanhood.
There are a few differences in rules between men’s and women’s sports. The sports with one set of rules for both men and women include archery, badminton, tennis, fencing, golf, and bowling. In badminton and tennis mixed doubles is very common. Co-ed volleyball is also very popular.
In basketball there are the most differences between the men’s and women’s game. There are six members on a team in women’s basketball: three guards and three forwards. There are two stationary guards and forwards and one roving guard and forward. The two stationary guards always play in their team’s backcourt while the two stationary forwards always play in the forecourt. A roving player is one who can play in both the fore and back courts. There is no ten second line in women’s basketball, but there is a three second lane. Before 1966 women could have only three dribbles; now, however, they have unlimited dribble.
At Oshkosh, women’s sports are divided into both interest and intramural groups. In interest sports, the women have the opportunity to play women from college in Wisconsin and bordering states. Intramural sports are played among coeds from dormitories and campus organizations.
In stressing the differences between interest and intramural sports, the fact that neither group is only for women who know all about it should also be mentioned. All women may play.
Women benefit socially as well as physically from sports, they benefit socially by team participation and mixing with other girls, to mention a few ways. WRA (Women’s Recreation Association) sponsors all interest and intramural sports. It also sponsors sports days, which are times when several colleges meet together to compete in one sport. Other sports which are WRA sponsored are archery and swimming. At WSU-O the officers who represent the students in WRA are: Diane Henning, president, Green Bay junior; Judy Trochinski, vice president, Berlin senior; Sandy Schnell, secretary, Keil junior; and Sharon Cook, treasurer, Appleton junior.