Breaking Barriers and Creating the New Normal
Women are constantly breaking barriers in their sports. They continuously seem to push back the boundaries that have been set in place for them while playing. How about the boundaries they continue to break working in the sports industry? Being able to be an inspiration to athletes growing up, or younger girls who want to be a part of the sports world, without playing a sport, is huge for the youth development of sports. So how exactly are leagues showing that?
When you look, you could clearly see that most of the sports industry is a male dominated area, but some of those areas are starting to change. For example, Jen Welter was the first female to coach in the National Football League, and appeared in her first game alongside the Arizona Cardinals in 2015. Another notable person is Katie Sowers, who took everyone by storm, by being the first openly LGBTQ+ coach in American football, and being the first woman to coach a team in a SuperBowl. She also is only the second woman to receive a full-time coaching job in the league. One other trailblazer in the NFL worth mentioning is Sarah Thomas. Sarah is the first female referee to officiate a major college football game, bowl game, and the Super Bowl. She is also the first female to be hired full-time by the NFL to be a referee.
Another league joining in the hiring of female referees is the American Hockey League. The league hired ten female referees for this season. The first AHL game ever officiated by a female referee, will be this Saturday, October 16th in Wilkes-Barre, PA. Katie Guay will be leading the game on Saturday, quickly followed by Kelly Cooke officiating on Sunday in Utica. All ten women have been a part of the NHL Officials Association mentorship program and were invited to the NHL Exposure Combine that took place in August. These women are making history, alongside Manon Rhéaume and Angela Ruggerio, who were the first goaltender and player to play in a professional men’s league game.
Leagues are constantly changing, looking to adapt in new ways to bring more women into the field and give them that push. More often than not now, we hear about another woman making history, and it is extremely exciting to hear! Being able to show the next generation that it is possible to achieve your goals, and break down walls to do so, is extremely important to shaping and changing our world of sports.