The Impact of Women's Participation in Sports in the United Kingdom

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of women's participation in sports within the United Kingdom, tracing the historical context of gender inequities and prejudices that have historically limited female involvement in sports. It examines the increasing participation of women in both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games, highlighting the trends and statistics over the decades. The report also investigates the current state of women's sports participation in the UK, looking at the physical activity levels of girls and young women, and initiatives aimed at increasing their involvement. Furthermore, it explores the advantages of women's participation in sports, including its positive impact on gender equality and the breaking down of stereotypes, with examples from the UK and Muslim countries. The report concludes with notable facts and achievements of female Olympians, underscoring the increasing dominance of women in modern sports and the broader societal implications of their success.

Females Participating in sports in UK
Gender inequities and prejudices have existed since antiquity. It was common for women to be
confined to domestic duties and child-rearing in many ancient civilizations. All aspects of life,
including sports, have been impacted by this. It wasn't until the last few decades that sexist
attitudes that prevented women from participating in some sports were no longer prevalent.
Fortunately, things have changed over time, and today, female athletes can compete in any
athletic event they choose.
There has been a steady rise in the number of women participating in any sort of sport or physical
exercise in England over the last several decades. There will be a rise in the number of women
who engage at least twice a month, at any level of intensity or length, to 17.8 million by 2020,
from the previous year's 17.33 million.

Part 1
Abstract
Women's involvement in sports is the topic of this study. Sport's culture has been impacted by the
removal of outdated preconceptions about the roles and abilities of each sex to engage in social
activities in most civilizations. The number of female athletes participating in sporting events has
steadily increased over the previous half century. Throughout this study, the researchers focused on
the Summer and Winter Olympic Games, two of the most prominent sporting events in the world.
The goal of this research is to demonstrate that sports involvement by women has a favorable effect
on a country's overall performance. Women's involvement in Muslim nations' athletic competitions
is analyzed, as well as specifics about female athletes.
Women participation in Sports Events in past times
Society's discrimination against women has been documented in a variety of contexts. Although this
is changing, women have historically been barred from political and religious leadership, as well as
from many other social activities, such as voting (and in some cases still are). Historically, women
were not permitted to participate in major sporting events, and their participation was largely
restricted to just watching them from the sidelines.
Women participation in the Summer Olympic Games
Only male athletes participated in the inaugural modern Summer Olympic Games in 1896. During
the rebirth of the Olympic movement, women had a minor part since Pierre de Coubertin, the
founder of the modern Games, envisioned an athletic event primarily for men. Advocating physical
strength and endurance as an outlet for men's moral compass was the primary goal of athletic
tournaments. Organizers such as Coubertin initially anticipated that women would only be able to
participate as spectators rather than participants. Perhaps they didn't think women were capable of
competing in such an important sporting event since they didn't have the strength or stamina.

After the first Summer Olympic Games in 1896, women were allowed to compete in the Summer
Games of 1900. The disciplines of golf and tennis each attracted 22 female competitors. Archery
was added to the women's competition at the 1904 Olympic Games. The gap began to narrow in the
1980s, as other sports were gradually added to the list. The International Swimming Federation
(ISF) was the first major sports federation to support the participation and inclusion of women at
competitions, voting to include women in swimming at the 1912 Olympic Games. Other
international sports federations began to include women in their competitions as a result of their
active participation in women's sports. Women's athletic associations were informal until the 1940s,
and they did not encourage participation in competitions. After World War II, this began to change,
and more women began to compete. The Summer Olympic Games participation of women is shown
in the graph below.
A significant rise in female participation in Summer Olympic Games was seen following World
War II in the 1950s. At the 1996 Olympics, it increased by a factor of three (to a whopping 34
percent). In the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, 45 percent of the athletes were female. Just
40 years ago, it was more than quadruple the number of athletes competing in the 1976 Summer
Olympics. The number of women competing in the Olympics is expected to rise even more in the
forthcoming Games as they continue to make progress.
UK Women participation in the Winter Olympic
Games
Analyzing data from the recent Winter Olympics reveals a similar pattern.
The first Winter Olympics featured just 11 female athletes out of a total of 258 competitors. Only
11 women competed. In 2010, 1044 women competed in the Winter Olympics, the first time they
broke the 1,000-athlete mark. In 2014, 1158 women competed in the Winter Olympics, the most
ever. The number of athletes participating in the 2018 Winter Olympics is expected to rise even
more. From 1924 through 2014, the proportion of women competing in the Winter Olympics as a
share of the total number of athletes is shown in the graph below.
According to the above-mentioned study of the Summer and Winter Olympic Games, there has
never been a time in history when more women have participated in these sporting activities than
presently. The expanding number of women's sporting events at the Olympics is largely responsible
for the rapid increase in female participation. It was also during this time period that advancements
in training tactics for women started to emerge, based on men's experience. Female athletes, as
could be anticipated, have reaped the rewards of medical and nutritional advancements, and they are
doing so with increasing frequency and success.

Part 2
We already know that females are less physically active than boys. Between the ages of 11 and 18,
girls are less likely than boys to participate in physical exercise. Girls between the ages of 5 and 18
should get 60 minutes of physical exercise each day, according to the CMO. Less than 8% of
females satisfy this standard. A whopping 16% of men are affected by this. Understanding young
people's perspectives, motivations, obstacles, and behaviors is essential to increasing their
participation in sports and physical activity. As of the end of 2016, the Girls Active function has
enrolled more than 26,000 girls from 140 different secondary schools in England and Northern
Ireland. For the first time, we've included male participants in our quantitative studies to better
compare and contrast the activity levels and mentalities of men and women (21,000 girls and 5,000
boys). These studies have had a positive impact on British school sports functions. It is possible to
utilize our results to customize functions to the requirements of girls and to promote increased
involvement. Participation in these functions may provide several advantages to a girl's physical
and emotional well-being, as well as valuable skills and self-confidence. In collaboration with the
Youth Sport Trust, organizations such as This Girl Can and Women in Sport are delivering the Girls
Active function, which is aimed at empowering girls to plan and execute physical education (PE)
and other forms of physical exercise in their schools. The initiative has already had a huge effect. A
total of 50,000 girls have already signed up for the initiative, and another 200 schools are expected
to do so shortly. Since females are more involved in the development and execution of the PE
function, it becomes more relevant to their daily life. People's beliefs impact their physical exercise
patterns. Girls and boys alike enjoy a healthy, active lifestyle. More than eight out of ten children
and adolescents understand the need of regular physical activity. As people become older, they lose
some of their high-level performance abilities, regardless of gender.
Advantages from Women’s participation in Sports
Events
Gender prejudice is being countered in part by the growing number of female athletes participating
in sporting events. Women can do so much more when they participate in athletics: they become
more active members of society, contribute to the cause of gender equality, and break down long-
held gender stereotypes in the process. According to research, women who take up physical activity
are more likely to overcome stereotypes and acquire leadership abilities than those who don't
partake. As a result, prominent female athletes' accomplishments and accolades serve as role
models for young girls, encouraging them to participate in sports and ensuring that the journey
toward gender equality continues unimpeded.
According to a study, countries gain from women's involvement in sporting events like the Summer
Olympic Games. Many nations have seen an increase in female engagement in athletics as a result
of gender equality, which has led to an increase in total participation. To bring home a more medals,
the number of female competitors competing has increased. Women from 29 nations, including the
UK, China, Russia, Canada, the Netherlands, Hungary, Jamaica, and Sweden, won more medals
than males in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

The example of the UK in the latest Summer
OGs(London 2012 Olympic)
The UK Olympic team serves as a good illustration of this finding. The UK was the first nation to
feature more women than men in the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games (269 women
and 261 men). In the end, the UK came out on top, with 58 medals for the ladies and 45 for the
men. Following a similar trend from 2012, they sent 292 female competitors of a possible 555 to
compete in the Summer Olympic Games. This is the biggest number of female athletes in Olympic
history for any country.
It worked again: The UK topped the medal table with 121 wins, extending its advantage over the
field. The bulk of the medals went to the ladies of Team UK, who took home the most trophies.
Only 55 medals were earned by men in Rio, but the UK claimed 61 medals for its women (5 medals
were from mixed events). In addition, 27 of the 61 female medals were gold medals.
Many nations quickly followed suit, seeing the value of include women in decision-making
processes. Women's athletes earned 41.5% of Australia's Olympic medals, helping the country
finish 10th overall with five of the eight golds awarded.
The example of Muslim countries: Saudi Arabia,
Bahrain, Qatar and others
Due to cultural and historical differences, certain Muslim nations still have very little (or no) female
involvement in politics and society.
Over 2 billion people from throughout the globe are Muslims (25 percent of the world population).
Women in certain Muslim nations still confront stronger prejudices as well as discouragement in the
sectors of sports, arts, education, and culture, a trend that is improving, but at a gradual rate, due to
diverse local customs and beliefs.
An international organization created in 1969, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has
57 member nations. The members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) all did badly in
the Olympics.

The paucity of female athletes may be directly related to the low performance of OIC's members,
given that more than half of all medals won by the top three countries in the 2016 Games were won
by its female competitors. Many nations in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) have
been unable or unwilling to send female athletes to the Olympics for years, despite the fact that
women make up almost half of their population. However, this has changed in recent years, which
is connected to a far more significant transformation in the position of women throughout OIC
nations.
The 2012 London Olympic Games were the first to include female athletes from all competing
countries. Female athletes were also sent from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Bahrain, making them the
first countries to send female athletes. Bahia al-Hamad, a female sharpshooter, was chosen to carry
Qatar's flag at the opening ceremony.
A look at various Muslim nations' female Olympic participation in the previous six Summer
Olympics is shown in the graphs below, from three separate regions: Middle East, South Asia, and
Africa, respectively.

Part 3
Interesting Facts and Achievements
The last section of the study focuses on some noteworthy statistics and accomplishments made by
female Olympians.
The Olympics are now dominated by women. Female competitors have also captivated the public
eye in recent Olympic games, earning admirers and motivating females to succeed.
The following are some notable facts and accomplishments of women who competed in the
Summer Olympic Games:
 When Charlotte Cooper of the United Kingdom triumphed in the tennis women's singles at
the 1900 Summer Olympic Games, she became the first woman to win an individual
Olympic gold medal.
 Comaneci became the first gymnast to get a perfect score of 10.0 in the Olympics when she
won five gold medals in the women's individual all-around competition.
 Nawal El Moutawakel of Morocco became the first Muslim female athlete to win an
Olympic gold medal. In Los Angeles 1984, she won the 400m hurdles for women.
 In 1988, women were only permitted to compete in the marathon at the Olympics.
 As a result of the inclusion of women's boxing in this year's Olympics in London, women
were able to participate in every sport.
 Synchronized Swimming and Rhythmic Gymnastics were the only women-only events at
the Rio Olympics in 2016.
 Gymnast Larisa Latynina ranks second in the all-time medal standings with 18 victories in
the Summer Olympics.
 The 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro had a female population of 45 percent
of the total athletes.
 The percentage of medals given to women at Rio 2016 was the highest ever, at 44 percent.
In comparison, in 1984, the percentage was little over 25 percent’s.
 Tennis and badminton are the only two Olympic sports that allow mixed-gender teams.
 Only equestrian sports and sailing allow men and women to compete directly against each
other at the Olympic Games

 Ladies' advantage in sport keeps on developing. The quantity of ladies who as of now play
game or who intently follow games is consistently expanding. This increment is a
consequence of changes that occurred in schools during the 1970s. The hole among people
in sport has restricted fundamentally throughout the last years.
Summary
The increasing number of women participating in sporting events has a beneficial effect on a
country's overall performance, according to the study. In 2012, the UK was the first nation to have a
team that had a majority of female athletes. Because of the obvious association between the number
of female athletes and overall performance improvement, several nations have followed suit.
Muslim nations are also making progress toward allowing women to participate in sports, although
at a slower rate due to cultural differences.

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 Study many female’s sports participation case study by making this project.