Now that I look back on it, of the sports I played as a kid, only soccer had the same set of rules and guidelines for both boys and girls. The others, baseball and lacrosse, had similarities but in the end, especially lacrosse, seems like a completly different game. I feel like it wasnt because I was a boy that I wanted to play the sports I did but instead that they seemed the most appealing to me. I got into lacrosse in elementary/middle school because it's a fun "boys" sport to go run and hit kids while trying to score goals and win the game. There doesn't sound like a better game to a young boy brought up seeing all over TV that men are apparently supposed to run fast and hit hard whereas women are supposed to be gymnists and tennis players, athletic but much more graceful and feminine. Going to an all boys, catholic high school also put's alot of pressure on the kinds of sporting activities you take part in. There was no cheerleading team and I cannot think of anyone who was a cheerleader outside of school but you can imagine what kinds of comments and ridicule a student would subject himself too if that was something he did. Even though a sport like field hockey is played by men in Europe and from what I have heard is fairly popular, the thought of playing it never crossed my mind because here and in nearly all places across the U.S. field hockey is a girls sport and whenever boys want to and/or are allowed to play, you always hear about it and some type of controversy is brought up.
Had I been born a girl I'm sure the sports I played and my experiences would be completly different then they are now. I can imagine that like so many kids I would have still played rec. soccer and maybe lacrosse and softball but I feel as if there would have always been someone saying try dance or cheerleading. I also would not have gone to the high school that I did and would have had a completly different sporting experience for those four years.

I am the type of person that is very competitive and aggressive when it comes to sports. The rougher the sport and more contact, the better in my opinion. I love to watch hockey, football, lacrosse, and soccer. I played soccer all through my youth and come high school I held the record of getting a yellow card every game for fouling or over aggressive play in one season. Now I play rugby the toughest contact team sport there is. No helmets, no pads, and full contact. The problem that I face as an athlete though is that I am a woman.
According to society I am not acting in agreement with my gender. If I were a man there would be no issue and I would be praised for my athleticism. . In Title IX: Facts, Figures, Myths, and Realities by Shakib that stated �??Males receive more participation opportunities than females.�?� The reading reminded me of an instance in high school when I had a very sexist teacher for my gym class that happened to be the football coach, he told me that he would never let a girl play on his team because women couldn�??t be as tough as his boys. Females are not encouraged to or given the opportunity to participate in historically male dominated sports and prove their �??toughness.�?� However, now that I am female participating in a masculine oriented sport I am considered a lesser athlete than the male athletes or a lesbian only interested in getting to touch other girls. I am heterosexual and get tackled and tackle others just as hard as the men do. The men�??s rugby team here for a while did not support us and ridiculed us for even trying to play rugby as women. That now thankfully has improved since our team has also become better. That even took our record to progress before they would acknowledge us. The prejudices of females in sports need to change which can only be done by women proving themselves as equals or better than their male counterparts. However even then I fear narrow-mindedness will still exist as it always has.

I really like TKuhl's point on how sports should be for entertainment purposes, and not to exclude anyone. I feel with today's society we were just forcing everyone into certain roles/sports and this is distancing ourselves from each other. Like Tony, I have the best time at sports events when everyone is having fun, even if both girls and guys are around.

I never thought about my experience in sport, in regard to the fact that I was a male. I just always viewed it as just playing sports do to the fact that it was a socially accepted practice. Now looking back on it, my experiences in sports have been much like the stereotypical male experience discussed in class. I played sports that are traditionally labeled as male dominant sports like, hockey, lacrosse, football, and basketball. Although, I do believe that I played those sports because I was influenced from society I do think there are other factors. For instance, those sports appeal to me, I liked to play sports that have contact and are highly competitive. I know some may argue that is the case because that is what society has said, but I don�??t believe that is the only reason why we, as individuals, enjoy a certain sport.

This is also the first time I have tried to look at sport from the perspective of the opposite sex. The traditional answer would be that I would probably be interested in things like cheerleading or figure skating and that very well might have been the case. I think now about when I played hockey and there was this one team had two girls on their team. When we used to play them the whole team would say things like, �??we can�??t lose to girls�?� or �??they must be lesbians.�?� Now thinking about it, those two girls probably fought through a lot more than any of the other players in the league did (who were male), which is pretty impressive.

My experience in sport has been pretty average for a male. I played the �??physical�?� sports that guys are expected to play, like soccer and basketball. I was raised to think that sports like dancing and cheerleading are for girls and are feminine. The sports I played are also considered team sports. This quality was important because it showed that I was not arrogant or trying to show-off. I was humble for working with others to achieve the goals of the team, not my own. Eventually, soccer became my main sport and in high school I ran into some problems with �??masculinity�?� in sports. Because I did not play football, some people considered me less tough or masculine. This primarily came from the football players who called us soccer players �??lawn fairies�?�, which also brought sexuality into the fray. They thought that just because their sport was built around hitting people they were tougher, but they got pads where we didn�??t. The only reason they felt this way was because that is how society has built up these two sports. So I guess you could say that I have been a victim of the issue of gender and sport, although I do not consider myself a victim in any sense of the word. Even though I played an accepted sport, it still was not �??manly�?� enough.
Now as for how things would have been different if I were of the opposite sex. I probably would have still played soccer when I was little because it was very popular where I lived. I probably would have also been a cheerleader because there were a lot of football teams around. And I think that as I got older, I would have ran into difficulty with whichever sport I played, for different reasons. Most people do not even consider cheerleading a sport, so I would not have even been considered an athlete. And I would have been considered �??mannish�?� if I played soccer, which I think is weird since I was considered �??feminine�?� for playing soccer as a guy.
My experience in sport as a spectator is much different. I either watch sports alone or with members of both sexes. I don�??t get too into sports as to who wins; I just like to see great plays, so I don�??t need to be around people. But when I go to the Raven�??s games my guy and girl cousins go to tailgating. In fact, one of my female cousins in more intense then most of the guys are that go to the game. Even my mom and girlfriend like to go to the games. And I have to say that having women around does not make me feel like less of a man. I think sports are more enjoyable when people aren�??t excluded and everyone can get involved. Sports should not revolve around gender; they should be about entertainment for everyone. I agree with the teacher that it is kind of counter-intuitive that it is more heterosexual to watch sports with people of the same sex. You usually want to do things with the opposite sex to be considered �??straight�?�, so I don�??t know what makes sport the exception.

I completely agree with L. Palmer. The only thing that is important is what makes somebody happy. Why should you have to think twice about playing a sport because of a stereotype. We all have one life to live and if we worry about what other people think all the time, we will regret many of the decisions we made. If sports is what makes somebody happy, no matter what sex you are, you should play and have as much fun as you can.

Throughout my childhood and adolescence, I have played Soccer, Baseball, Basketball, Lacrosse, and Volleyball. I know that it was very acceptable for me to be playing all these sports. I had great experiences playing all of these different sports. I was able to be with my friends, get exercise, stay busy, and most importantly have fun. I think that if I did not play sports as a male, friends and other guys would look me at differently my age. Usually, if you didn�??t play sports, guys would consider you more feminine. On the other hand, if I were a girl playing sports I would be looked at as more masculine, or as most people would call it, a Tom Boy. If I were a girl, I would assume that my girlfriends would make fun of me or look at me differently because I was acting like a guy. In my opinion, I think it is ridiculous that sports are considered a guy thing. Sports are a way to get in shape, move around, play a game, have fun, and be active. Unless girls are not allowed to be active and have fun, I'm not quite sure why a girl is looked down upon if they play sports. I wish that people didn't think of it as a "guy" thing. Why cant girls or guys play or not play sports if they want to. It should not be looked at any differently no matter what sex you are. And if girls can play sports they can certainly watch sports. There are plenty of guys that watch women�??s college basketball, as well as women�??s professional basketball. If guys can watch women play, it makes sense that girls can watch men play. It is one big generalization that girls only care about beauty and not wanting to get hurt or run around and play physical. Although this is true for many girls, it is also not true for many. Each individual is different and some like sports and some do not. Some men love sports and some do not. So instead of making one big generalization about girls and their lack of sport skills and knowledge, people should accept everyone for who they are and what makes them happy. In my opinion that is all that matters.

Growing up I would definitely classify myself as a tomboy. I wore boy�??s clothes, had a short haircut and all my closest friends were boys. At Elementary School recess I wouldn�??t be playing �??Red Rover�?� or �??Four Square�?� with the girls I would play wall-ball or basketball with the guys. At a young age I didn�??t know the difference between what was considered masculine or feminine, I just did what made me happy. One of my best guy friends lived right next door. Everyday after school we would go in the backyard and play catch or kick around a soccer ball. Not only was I involved in playing sports but I raced remote control cars, and constantly played Playstation. I even collected MLB baseball cards. Basically I did everything that was stereotypical to what a boy would do but my parents never forced me to do anything less.
Getting into the middle school years was when I started to realize that maybe being competitive with the boys would scare them away. All the girls always acted like that didn�??t know the rules of any game and would do anything to sit out. I questioned myself and wondered was I supposed to act the same, or compete like I�??ve always done in the past. It didn�??t take long for me to recognize that the boys would get irritated at the girls who would make a scene, and protest how much against they were against participating.
Since my Middle and High School years I found my niche in soccer and my closest friends are athletes. My best friend plays soccer at Maryland and my other really close friend play lacrosse at Maryland. Even at the Towson it�??s the exact same. I can only name a handful of people I know that don�??t play a sport.
I can�??t say that if I were to be of the opposite sex my experience would be any different. Seeing as I lived the life of a �??boy�?� when I was younger. I think everyone should be free to participate in any sport whether that�??s Football or even Ice Skating. It�??s unfortunate that we have to attach stereotypes with everything.

I have to agree with dyee223, where some women dont help the image as how they portray sports, when they wear pink yankees hats, and ask questions repeatedly during football gams. There are alot of girls out there that know more about sports then me(which isnt saying much) but there are so many more that dont know what position the quarter back is.

I agree with marc when he says that there are plenty of girls out there that can play just as hard maybe harder than some guys. I know a few girls that are just as aggressive as I am when playing sports and some of them might be better than I am. So does that make me less masculine because a girl is better than me?

The only sports that I played that did not have an equal (meaning same rules and guide lines as men�??s) sport for girls are lacrosse and football. Now there is not women�??s football but there is women�??s rugby, and well rugby is much more rough then football. So that then begs the question why is there no women�??s football. As for lacrosse there is both men and women�??s lacrosse but yet even though they are the same sport the rules are so different there are almost two totally different games. I also know many girls who play lacrosse and hate that there is no contact and with that they could just strap up and play like the men do. So why do they play with no contact?, and why do they all still have to wear skirts?, and why is there no women�??s NFL? Since I am a male and was able to play men�??s lacrosse and football, I was able to play full contact and love that I can. The main reason people love to watch football, and lacrosse, along with playing it is for the hits and the full contact. If I were a girl I would not be to happy playing lacrosse with no contact. I also played soccer, baseball, and basketball, these are all non contact sports so the male and female versions are the same, being a girl and playing them wouldn�??t bother me at all. Given all that, my sporting experience would be extremely different if I were a girl and playing those sports. Since soccer and baseball would still be the same sports women are still treated differently and aren�??t expected to play at as intense of a level as guys, and well I would not be happy at all to play non-contact lacrosse. It�??s really hard to say how different my sporting experience would be as a female because I wouldn�??t know any better then how females play sports. I can only imagine it would be very different, both physically, and mentally.

Growing up I played many sports such as soccer, baseball and basketball. If I were the opposite sex I still think id play the same sports because both genders can play those sports. But I think the way that I played or was expected to play those sports is different. Men are supposed to play with aggression and if they get hurt there not supposed to show it. I remember one time I got hit by a pitch in the arm and it hurt pretty bad. My coach told me to get up brush it off walk down to first and stop being a wuss. That comment got me pretty mad. He was pretty much saying that if I showed my emotions, I�??d be acting like a �??girl�?�. I think our parents and coach�??s mold their children into what is expected of society. If you�??re male, you should act masculine and if you�??re female you should act feminine.
Not only does our parents and coaches determine our choices of sport, but the media has a big influence as well. I agree with the article, by Michael A. Messner, titled the �??Televised Manhood Sports Formula.�?� The article mentions how males and females should behave in society. A lot of what we watch on television shows us how males and females should act. TV programs such as ESPN, WWF, NBA, MLB, and NFL are mostly watched by males. It�??s in those programs that males learn how to behave. It teaches us what is right and wrong for both genders. Women are portrayed in more of a sexual way, while men are portrayed as dominating. The sports broadcasters are mostly men, with a few exceptions of female reporters. ESPN and NFL have more female broadcasters than the others, but I�??ve noticed that there are no females hosting a game, such as being in the commentating booth. Females are usually found on the sidelines giving a 10-second injury report instead of actually analyzing the game. They usually tell us things that aren�??t really related to the actual game that is going on. I�??m not saying I agree that they should be portrayed in that way, but viewers see that and think that women are inferior in the land of sports.
I used to watch a lot of WCW and WWF wrestling growing up, and now I can�??t stand it. It kind of shaped the way that a man should act towards other men and other women. Women of wrestling are only they�??re for sex appeal. No one wants to see two ugly women in the ring, wrestling each other. They hire young hot women, dress them in barely any clothing and have them play around in the ring for 5 minutes. It is a male dominated business and that�??s what men want to see. They would have matches for whoever won the match got to have the girl. Its like the girl is a rag doll that they�??re passing around and the girl has no choice in the matter. I think this gives off a bad stereotype to the young kids out there that watch wrestling or any other male driven sport. Its up to parents to teach there kids right from wrong, but the media has a big influence on how we act towards our self and others.

Throughout high school I did Varsity Lacrosse, Soccer and Indoor track making myself a tri-sport athlete and participating in a sport every season possible. When I think back to my soccer playing days I remember being in elementary school and the earlier years of middle school when we still had recess. I was always 1 of maybe, at the most, 3 girls who played soccer with the boys, instead of sitting on a rock and gossiping in the sun. Interestingly enough, the boys were extremely accepting, happy to have some girls playing and never treated me differently than the boys while playing. The boys didn�??t take it easy on me or the other girls simply because we are girls, and would push us around just like they would anyone else. On the other hand, the people who would criticize me for playing would be the other girls in my grade. They would ask me about being worried that I might sweat, or say that I shouldn�??t be playing because the boys play sports at recess and girls shouldn�??t. In this situation I was happy to be accepted by the boys and didn�??t care at all what the girls thought, because playing soccer made me happy, and born an athlete, I always like to be active. When I ran track in high school the times that I would get teased by my friends would be when they would make fun of the boys I hung around with that also ran track with me. The boys from my track team in high school were made fun of often times, because track isn�??t seen as a �??manly�?� or �??masculine�?� sport because you aren�??t using physical force to tackle someone or knock someone over. The funny thing is, I think running track is one of the most physically demanding sports, because while other sports run as punishment, they constantly run and ONLY run. People see �??trackies�?� as wimps and not athletes. Strangely enough, I watched the Minnesota football game this weekend and a guy ran something like 70 yards and was winded for a good 10min after; he was kneeling over, had to get a cold wash cloth on his head, and had to get help from the trainers. This is what we call our major athletic sports? A guy can�??t run 70 yards without being exhausted while someone doing track can run for 3 hours and be perfectly fine? (and we say those people aren�??t athletes)

I think to be honest every female has been discriminated against when it comes to sports and it drives me nuts. I have always been very athletic and into sports. I not only love playing sports and being active but I love watching them as well. With my guy friends I always remember being put down and challenged by them day in and day out. When in season, the guy�??s basketball team would want to scrimmage us each year before starting off the season to prove that they were better than us. My last year playing basketball in high school, our guy�??s team was supposed to be this amazing team and soar through everyone and supposed to be state champs and so on. They always had the support of the girls team. Whenever they had a game and we did not we always were there support them. Their season ended rather early and they did not make it as far as they wanted. However our team was on our way, victory after victory. It wasn�??t until we won our conference and division and made it to the state tournament that we got support and recognition to them. As soon as we were at state level, they were present at all of our games and supporting us 110%. It was almost like we had to prove something to them to just get their support.
Still, years later, I still see the separation of women and men in sports. My guy friends always say that they know more this and that, to be honest they do, because men eat, sleep, and drink to sports. My best friends have a roommate who isn�??t into sports. He doesn�??t know much about it and it is just not his thing. He is know as a �??fag�?� to them because he isn�??t interested in sports. Not so much that he isn�??t interested but he isn�??t a fanatic. I heard this story once on the news about a women going into labor and calling her husband who was at a division championship NFL game. She was having THEIR baby and he asked her if he could stay to the end of the quarter and then meet her. That is not OK. THAT IS REDICILOUS! Is sports that controlling over lives?
I hate how our society is. �??With the exception of Sports Center, women and blacks never appeared as the main voices in authority in the booth�?� (The Televised Sports Man Hood Formula). This is most definitely shifting but it drives me nuts because a female can report and be just as knowledgeable as a male. I enjoy sports, I watch them each week, attend them whenever I can, it doesn�??t even have to be a collegiate or professional event, I just enjoy watching whatever sports I can. Because I am a female, that doesn�??t mean I cannot hold my own when it comes to sports. I may not have the whole roster memorized and know every past, present and future player but that is only because I have better more important things on the brain, things that will eventually get me somewhere and not just be used on the trivia calendars in a few years.

Playing sports has always been an important aspect of my life. With never letting a day go by without having some sort of sporting activity I have gained experience in sports as a male athlete. These experiences have come over time through the sports that I have played. The majority of sports I played are known to be male dominant; these consisted of baseball and basketball. Golf, was primarily the other sport that I played, but it is not considered a male dominant sport. From playing these sports, it was easy to recognize that the more male dominant sports had more body contact, more aggression, seemed more competitive on the field, and lastly were played with fancier and technical body movement which developed from having more skill. As mentioned in class, in dealing with the sport as a male preserve the traits of the sports consisted of �??strength, aggression, and violence�?� (8). This, on the other hand, is different in golf and also women�??s sports. I felt golf only had one similarity to the other male dominant sports, the competitiveness on the field. Otherwise, golf is played in a different atmosphere. Some of the aspects of other sports are that one can communicate with a loud tone on the field, which is not tolerated in golf. Another difference is it is an individual sport that does not involve body contact. Playing golf doesn�??t involve brute force, but it does take strength. That is a key reason it appeals to both women and men. But the major difference between the other sports and golf is etiquette. That is the most important aspect in golf. Golf is grounded in etiquette - this is why it�??s considered more of a �??gentleman�??s�?� sport and skill can overcome sheer strength.
As I mentioned before I have played sports my whole life. As a male athlete I played baseball and golf in High School. I then was lucky to continue to play baseball at a college level my freshman and sophomore years until an injury pulled me away from baseball. I feel if I were the opposite sex my concentration would have been on golf or lacrosse, the latter which I enjoyed but did not play much of. The main reason these would appeal to me as a woman is because there is less body contact involved in these two sports. All around I feel male sports are more exciting mostly because of the innate aggression and skill that is in the games. Women�??s sports are starting to develop and become more popular on television. As of now though, men�??s sports still dominate on television, in the media, and are more popular in contemporary society.

My experience in sports has always been full of highs and lows. I started out playing lacrosse and basketball when I was younger. These were my two sports and will going to the high school that I did they were both very competitive both with the teams that we played. Along with the competition among peers for the limited amount of roster positions available. Growing up in Maryland especially Baltimore county and going to the so called top school in the state and country for lacrosse was a tall task to handle. I played lacrosse all my life, but as soon as I step foot onto that field my freshman year it was a totally different atmosphere.
The players were all just as good as me and a lot were better. The same thing happened in basketball which ultimately made me some playing the sport that was my first true love. As I look back on it now I realize if I would have worked just as hard at basketball as I did lacrosse I probably would have turned out to be better at basketball then lacrosse. That not what happened I put all my time and effort into lacrosse and it started to pay off as I move on in high school.
However my junior year was pretty good getting playing time with a very senior-laden team. I was poised for a breakout senior year and was very excited for it, then can the news that our head coach had some relations with a faculty member. Being at a catholic school this was not looked a pond very highly and he was asked to set down. I found this out the summer going into my senior year and I was not happy because the assistant coach, who was appointed the head coaching job, did not see me in the way my old head coach did. Politics got in the way of me playing the amount that I worked so hard to get to my senior year because that was how this coach ran things. I also got hurt and when I came back stronger then before I didn�??t get my chance or sport back.
I look back on this and have realized that this all a part of sports and life for that matter. You don�??t always get the things that you work hard for and feel that you deserve. As I sit and think about it being in the family that I am and going up in the class I did my sporting experience wouldn�??t have changed if I were the opposite sex. I would have just been sent to one of the private girls schools, which are built on the same structure as all the only private schools. Growing up in this area of Maryland is very different then anywhere else I know off. Private schools are what runs the academic and especially sports world. The society that I grew up in was very distinct and is not found anywhere else. The pressure for sports especially in the two sports that I picked to play is high around here which means that people want to win and will do whatever it takes to do so.

The gendered role society has imposed has affected my sports as in what I played and how comfortable I was in the sport. Playing little league baseball was accepted until about age seven or eight when playing baseball was a sport for boys and girls played softball. Continuing to play a male gendered sport was not easy with coaches making it clear girls were not welcome. This was done so by allowing girls to play only the minimum amount in a game, gearing practice towards helping the boys and the girls would just do what everyone else was, but was not given anything constructive to improve. Girls were in general overlooked and unwelcome. Eventually by age ten, there were not many girls if any involved in baseball. As described in the Title IX article, �??Gender equity in sport has not been reached. Males receive more participation opportunities than females.�?� This is shown in softball, which seems to be accepted for both genders once out of the high school. That is yet another example of how men, the power holders determine what is accepted and what is not.
The other sports I was involved in, dance and gymnastics are female-based sports. In those it was obvious males were not as accepted, not discouraged by the coaches or the others involved in the sport, but by their male peers. Once again, acceptance is male powered. The studio at which I danced, the owner�??s son was highly involved until about high school when your peers have a high influence. Our most involved male influence decided to switch to soccer instead of ballet and tap, a more acceptable sport for both genders. Sports have a long way to come before everyone is given an equal chance and society�??s perception is altered.

Very few times in my life have I thought about being the opposite sex and loving the game of football the way that I do. In high school I participated in football and loved every minute of it, even practice. All throughout my life, since 5th grade, I have lived, breathed, and dreamt of football. I played inside linebacker and fullback. Many times I was asked to changes offensive positions to play guard but I just felt more comfortable at fullback and did everything in my power to not have to play on the line. All of my hard work paid off and I was able to remain a fullback throughout my career even though I didn�??t play much varsity football as a fullback. On the other hand I was somewhat of a defensive guru due to my lengthy studies of opposing team�??s game film. It was like I knew what every play was going to be before the snap of the ball and most of the time I would have been standing in the hole or passing lane of what was supposed to be a nice play for my competition. Also I played baseball but it was more of a second sport varsity letter for me. As previously stated I had played baseball since I was 5 and have had experiences with numerous females that played on my team. This was just normal for me to play with girls in the league that I played in because softball was not as prevalent in my community. But as I grew older there were hardly any girls that played due to, in my opinion, the social norm of boys playing baseball and girls play softball. On the side of football I would have most likely had an extremely hard time liking football let alone playing it if I were a girl. I have never once played with or against a girl so it would have been way out of a culturally normal behavior. Thus this would have most likely led me to play what us as Americans consider the alternative to football in field hockey.

I agree in some regards to what mgenn1 has said. I do feel that men's sports are more exciting then women. Mostly because of the aggression and skills that are performed. However I can remember when the womens soccer team won the gold a couple of years back, and not just women were watching the games everyone was. I guess its not the excitement all the time that makes us watch certain sports, but what is occurring outside the sports like how soccer and women's sports were evolving in the US. Also what we watch in sports is also influenced by what our peers are watching.

I agree with francesca terrano when he says there is still a seperation between womens and men sports

Francesca makes a good point about sports consuming lives and how females appear not up to standard because they aren't as knowledgeable since they engulf their lives in sports. I am a huge baseball fan and think I know a good amount about the sport but anytime a guy hears of this they challenge my knowledge to find out just how I compare to them in it. Females do have to prove themselves in the sports world to even be viewed seriously.

Not all women are not in tune with sports. Sure, there are the few girls you see that wear the pink Yankees hat because it matches their shoes, but I know several girls who are very knowledgeable about sports, most of which were athletes. I�??ve noticed that if women do not participate in sport, they don�??t find it too interesting. They are interested in what their friends are interested in. I don't believe that there are any more females that don't know too much about sports than there are men. I know a good amount of men that know nothing about sports. Some guys I know will come over and watch the game with us knowing only the main objective of the sports, but that�??s as far as it goes. It�??s kind of like when my mom and my sister sit down to watch football with my dad, my brothers, and I. They watch because they enjoy watching. My family has always been Redskins fans. If my mom and sister were to go out and get Redskins�?? shirts or jersey, is that acceptable? Is it okay for them to support and follow a team without being knowledgeable of the sport? I believe there are a lot of men who do this also. Another thing is I feel that sporting events are being used as a social event nowadays. The women I see at game are there to hang out with their friends and to tailgate, not to support their favorite teams. Does that make them true sports fans?
Society portraits men as the dominant athletes. A majority of the sports televised are male sports. �??Males receive more participation opportunities than females�?� (�??Title IX: Facts, Figures, Myths, and Realities�?� Shakib.) It isn�??t that girls are any less athletic than boys, it�??s the fact that girls don�??t have too much of an opportunity to be involved in sport. Not that there aren�??t a lot of female sports, but male sports are shown to be more physical and difficult. I�??ve seen girls lacrosse before and I believe that it is way more difficult than men�??s lacrosse. There are a lot more rules and the sticks have smaller pockets which makes it harder to catch and throw. Another thing is that there are some sports that females are more athletic than men in, such as gymnastics. Women are better in some sports just as men are better in others.
Watching sports with the guys is just another guy thing like grilling or fishing. There aren�??t females around because it is our time to get away. I know when my girlfriend is a around when I am doing any of those activities, it�??s just annoying. So, it�??s not about being a homosocial settings for me, it�??s about being able to sit back and enjoy what it is that I am doing.
I played football and lacrosse in highschool. If I had been a girl, lacrosse would have been less physical, and I probably would not have even played football, though we did have a girl play for our team. She was a senior when she joined the team. The coaches did not think it was the best idea for her to play with us on varsity so she played JV, and she wasn�??t too bad at it. She was a third string reciever, but she could make some plays. The other teams would say that we had an unfair advantage because they were afraid they would hurt her.

I disagree with mglenn when saying The main reason golf and womens lacrosse are more apealing o women is because there is less body contact involved in these two sports. Body contact does not bother all females. I do not mind being ruffed up, thrown around, bleeding and hurt but playing through it. Men do not have a painless gene. We all feel pain. It is just another generalization of females not wanted to break a nail, get dirty or play dirty but there are plenty out there!

Looking back on my sporting experience in a more gender associated perspective; I definitely see things a little differently from the usual recounts on my childhood. I remember when I was in elementary school, where if a teammate wore a pair of soccer shoes that were maybe a lighter shade of blue, he would be chastised and humiliated by being called a girl or a girl�??s name. Other similar situations were rampant even to today, where if I came to class and complained of a recent injury, my friend would mock me by pretending to cry and maybe throw in a few jokes questioning my male fortitude or toughness. This relates to �??The Televised Sports Manhood Formula�?�, where the authors explained their research on televised sports is a �??...master ideological narrative that�?� discipline�??s boys�?? bodies, minds, and consumption choices in ways that construct a masculinity that is consistent with the entrenched interests of the sports/media/commercial complex.�?� I definitely noticed as a kid that boys mimic what they see on television by either using a particular athlete to model against or by using themes from the media to help influence their own thoughts on sports.

In particular, a lot of young boys form their thoughts on individual sports from what they�??ve heard from another source (i.e. an older brother or a sport commentary program). In regards to my choice to play soccer, I have definitely felt criticism from others who stated that soccer is a �??wimpy�?� or �??girls�?� sport due to its perceived lack of contact. Jim Rome is a fine example of a single minded man who lambasts soccer whenever he can, and in no doubt his trivial thoughts have influenced many a men. Luckily, I and a lot of my friends know the difference between an opinion of a sport and reality, and this has helped me remain level headed when looking at a given sport.
If I was born of the opposite sex, I am not certain to how my experience would�??ve been as a female. I�??m sure my Greek father would�??ve tried to have me play soccer, but like my sisters experience with sport, I could�??ve ended up cheerleading after losing interest in soccer like she did. I�??m not sure why she lost interest in soccer, but maybe it was due to the lack of opportunity she had to move on to a competitive team, or it may have been due to pressure from her peers to not be a �??butch�?� girl and play something not as aggressive or rough. In all, I�??m positive that if I was of the opposite sex my choice of sport would�??ve varied almost completely from my present situation, due to outside forces affecting my desire to play certain sports.

Well I played lacrosse and football throughout my life and these are two of the most comtact sports you can play. In both these sports it is about showing how masculine you are how hard you can knock the crap out of someone. It is also about how much pain you can tolerate and play with. It was always the coach saying come on your fine. You always play hurt becasue you do not want to be called a girl. What is it girls feel pain more than guys do or girls will call it quits earlier. I have found out that girls in sport are just as tough as we are. But when your coach puts you up to the challenge by calling you a girl if you sit out. No guy wanted to ever be considered soft in these sports I played so most everyone played hurt. These were also two sports that women could primarily not play. they were to rough and the girls could get hurt. Hpw come in girls lacrosse you cannot hit anyone or even barely nudge them. Are girls weaker than guys or something can they not take alittle pain. Would a girl be considered a tom boy if they wanted to play football and get dirty, bloody and roughed up. Girls have been discriminated against in just about every aspect of sport. They had to play in skirts. This is crazy I know plenty of girls that are tough enough to take some hits and deleiever some bigger hits.