National Girls in Sports Day

 

Today, February 6th, is the 27th annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day (NGWSD). 

For more information on the National Girls and Women in Sports Day, visit www.aahperd.org.

Facts on Wisconsin Girls Rugby

-11 Teams, including the newly formed Appleton girls team.

-Approximately 250 high school players currently registered with USA Rugby.

-A record five teams competing in the Midwest Championships in April


Fast Facts on Women’s Rugby in America

• USA Rugby leads the world in women’s rugby participation with over 20,000 participants

• Over 3,000 girls are participating in high school rugby

• There are 35 different state championships for Youth and High School girls 

• There are 347 women’s collegiate rugby clubs and plans for Women’s Rugby to become a recognized NCAA Sport in the near future

• USA Rugby now has 16 contracted, full-time women’s rugby sevens residents at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA 

USA Women’s Rugby Achievements

• In 1987 the USA Women’s National Team was officially born with their first match against the Canadian Women’s National Team. Although the women were not permitted to wear the Eagle logo, this match was sanctioned by Rugby Canada and USA Rugby. USA and Canada began holding an annual match, which became known as the CanAm series. For ten years the Women Eagles went undefeated in this test series.

• In 1991, the USA Women’s National Team won the inaugural Women’s World Cup. In front of a crowd of about 5,000 people, the Eagles went on to control England in the final 19-6 and take the title.

• In 1994, the USA Women’s National Team took second at the World Cup. The United States lost a competitive game to England 38-23 in the second ever Women's Rugby World Cup, hosted in Scotland.

• In the third IRB Women's World Cup in 1998, the USA Women finished second, losing to New Zealand 44-12. This was the first Women's World Cup fully sanctioned by the IRB, and was held in the Netherlands.

• In 2008, the USA Women’s National 7s Team, coached by the first female USA Rugby National 7s Team Coach, Jules McCoy, won the Hong Kong 7s for the first time ever. The USA beat Canada 21-7 in the final in front of 40,000 fans.

• In 2009, the USA Women’s National 7s Team competed in the first ever, combined Men’s & Women’s IRB Rugby Sevens World Cup in Dubai, UAE, barely losing to New Zealand in the semi-finals.

• On December 18, 2010, a USA Women’s Referee became the first female to ever referee an IRB international game. USA Rugby Referee Dana Teagarden was appointed by the International Rugby Board (IRB) to the senior men’s international test match between the Netherlands and Hong Kong in Amsterdam.

• In January 2012, USA Rugby announced the first full-time contracts for USA Women’s and Men’s Rugby 7s players. In partnership with the United States Olympic Committee (USOC), 23 rugby sevens athletes received fulltime training contracts.

• In November 2012, USA Women won the first ever IRB Women’s Sevens World Series Shield, taking home some historic hardware. On Day 2, the USA beat China and France decisively to win the Bowl.

• On February 1st and 2nd, 2013, USA Rugby and the BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, Texas hosted the second stop on the inaugural IRB Women's Sevens World Series. Twelve teams played historic matches all weekend with the USA Women taking 2nd place. 

What is National Girls and Women in Sports Day?

NGWSD was started by the National Association for Girls and Women in Sports to honor Olympic volleyball athlete Flo Hyman for her achievements and work in women’s equality in sports.  Since Hyman’s death in 1986, the NGWSD has become a day where we remember the past and celebrate current sports achievement for women.