National Girls And Women In Sports Day Recognition Set For Sunday
Feb. 8, 2005
Lawrence, Kan. — The University of Kansas athletics department will pay tribute to the 19th annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day during the women’s basketball game versus Colorado on Sunday, Feb. 13, in Allen Fieldhouse. Tipoff for the game is at 1 p.m.
KU will recognize over 50 former letterwinners, in addition to current Jayhawks on nine of Kansas’ 11 women’s teams. The KU softball team will be playing at the Hilton Classic in Las Cruces, N.M., while tennis will be in action against Texas. Following the game, an autograph session for all current Jayhawk female student-athletes will be set up in the south concourse.
Recognitions and celebrations of girls and women in sports are held all across the country during early February. National Girls and Women in Sports Day was chartered by the U.S. Congress in 1986 to honor female athletic achievement and recognize the importance of sports and fitness participation for all girls and women.
Thousands of sports educators, coaches, athletics directors, recreation directors, association members, sponsors, students, and parents across the country will show their support of the Day and of this year’s theme, “More Than A Game”. NGWSD is celebrated in all 50 states with community-based events, award ceremonies, and activities honoring the achievements and encouraging participation of girls and women in sports.
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.
NGWSD is jointly organized by the National Girls and Women in Sport Coalition. The Coalition combines the experience and resources of the seven premiere girls- and women-serving organizations in the United States: American Association of University Women, Girl Scouts of the USA, Girls Incorporated, the National Association for Girls and Women in Sport, National Women’s Law Center, the Women’s Sports Foundation, and the YWCA USA.
Collectively, these organizations have been in existence for over 432 years and have a membership reach of 5.5 million girls and women.
More information on the NGWSD foundation can be found at www.womenssportsfoundation.org.
