2008 Woodie Awards
Opinions Battle
Should sports be co-ed
by Matthew Jackson
Issue date: 1/28/08 Section: Opinion
By Rebekah Scruggs
The battle of the sexes has raged since the beginning of time. One question has been argued over and over again: Which sex is superior, male or female? For the longest time, it has been the mindset of human beings that men are the superior sex. They're the strong, protecting breadwinners for their families. That's the way it has been and always will be.
The same is thought about sports. Most sports require great physical strength and endurance, important traits that supposedly only men possess and women know nothing about. This is not true. Women can have the same athletic potential as men. Women can even excel more than men in some sports, such as gymnastics.
No one can argue that gymnastics isn't a sport. It requires great physical strength and endurance. It also requires balance and control, which is something that most men struggle with.
Although both sexes fight about who is better, I think there's a middle ground. I think that if men and women play on a co-ed team, they can stop fighting and combine their strength to defeat opposing teams. This way time is not wasted on pointless arguing and everyone participates.
I think co-ed teams are a great idea. I don't think someone has to wait until they are an adult to play on one, either. Why not start during adolescence? This way boys and girls can learn to work together. It could help to one day prove the assumption wrong that males are the superior sex.
By Andy House
Sports are some of the most important and popular forms of entertainment and exercise. Therefore argument about who can play what sports has become more visible.
The focus of most arguments has become high school and college athletics. This argument seems to have already been solved for us. With the Title IX Education Amendment of 1972, the U.S. government put into law the necessity to have equal opportunity based on gender in all activities, including organized sports. Title IX states that, "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."
With Title IX, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA put forth the initiative to have equal numbers of sports at institutions for both men and women.
Doesn't that fact make the obvious point that each sport has a designated gender? Why should a girl be allowed to play on the men's basketball team? There is an opportunity for her on the women's team. Even the argument that there aren't any women's football teams doesn't carry any value. Many schools, such as Piedmont, have a women's volleyball team, but no men's team. Even though there may be some sports that women may want to participate in that they cannot, there are also some that men want to participate in that they cannot. Basically, with the equal opportunity that is provided for both men and women to participate in sports, there is no need to overlap the genders.
The battle of the sexes has raged since the beginning of time. One question has been argued over and over again: Which sex is superior, male or female? For the longest time, it has been the mindset of human beings that men are the superior sex. They're the strong, protecting breadwinners for their families. That's the way it has been and always will be.
The same is thought about sports. Most sports require great physical strength and endurance, important traits that supposedly only men possess and women know nothing about. This is not true. Women can have the same athletic potential as men. Women can even excel more than men in some sports, such as gymnastics.
No one can argue that gymnastics isn't a sport. It requires great physical strength and endurance. It also requires balance and control, which is something that most men struggle with.
Although both sexes fight about who is better, I think there's a middle ground. I think that if men and women play on a co-ed team, they can stop fighting and combine their strength to defeat opposing teams. This way time is not wasted on pointless arguing and everyone participates.
I think co-ed teams are a great idea. I don't think someone has to wait until they are an adult to play on one, either. Why not start during adolescence? This way boys and girls can learn to work together. It could help to one day prove the assumption wrong that males are the superior sex.
By Andy House
Sports are some of the most important and popular forms of entertainment and exercise. Therefore argument about who can play what sports has become more visible.
The focus of most arguments has become high school and college athletics. This argument seems to have already been solved for us. With the Title IX Education Amendment of 1972, the U.S. government put into law the necessity to have equal opportunity based on gender in all activities, including organized sports. Title IX states that, "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."
With Title IX, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA put forth the initiative to have equal numbers of sports at institutions for both men and women.
Doesn't that fact make the obvious point that each sport has a designated gender? Why should a girl be allowed to play on the men's basketball team? There is an opportunity for her on the women's team. Even the argument that there aren't any women's football teams doesn't carry any value. Many schools, such as Piedmont, have a women's volleyball team, but no men's team. Even though there may be some sports that women may want to participate in that they cannot, there are also some that men want to participate in that they cannot. Basically, with the equal opportunity that is provided for both men and women to participate in sports, there is no need to overlap the genders.
Be the first to comment on this story