Seven cool things to do today while celebrating National Girls and Women in Sports Day #NGWSD

Today is the 35th Annual National Girls & Women in Sports Day (NGWSD). It’s the opportunity to celebrate and support girls and women to play and be active.


If you choose to participate through social media, please use #NGWSD as one of your hashtags so the world can see wrestling for girls and women.


Here are a few things girls and women in wrestling can do to participate.

1. Participate in 2021 Girls Fest from Women’s Sports Foundation at 4:00 p.m. ET


The Women’s Sports Foundation will host its 2021 Girls Fest at 4:00 pm EST today for its 2021 Girls Fest, a free online event geared towards girls and their families. Hosted by World Rugby Hall of Famer and WSF President Phaidra Knight, young athlete and journalist Pepper Persley, and award-winning basketball analyst LaChina Robinson, Girls Fest will feature:

• intimate interviews with trailblazers, collegiate and champion athletes,

• an inside look from Olympic and Paralympic athletes,

• a conversation by girls, for girls on sports advocacy and how this generation will lead, and

• the kickoff to WSF’s star-studded fitness challenge!


The event will be streamed live from the WSF YouTube channel. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Women%27s+Sports+Foundation


As a bonus, we are told five-time World champion wrestler Adeline Gray will be part of this event.

2. Attend Beat the Streets Virtual Celebration online at 4:30 p.m. ET


Join in on a a collaborative effort led by high school females from Beat the Streets Chicago, New England, and New York City. This celebration will be an opportunity to unite our Beat the Streets communities, increase awareness of equity in sport and to meet new role models. This interactive 90-minute celebration is FREE and open to everyone! To join the event, please register by filling out this Google form: https://forms.gle/Xjq3oPXbxsXdAia17.


Among those on the program are:

Bri Csontos - Pan American Champion & Current Student-Athlete at Columbia University

Maddy Tung - Rhodes Scholar & Former Student-Athlete US Air Force Academy

Marisol Nugent - U23 Champion & Current Student-Athlete at Lehigh University

Randi Miller - Olympic Bronze Medalist

Tamyra Mensah-Stock - World Champion

Terry Steiner - USA Wrestling Women’s Freestyle Head Coach

Travis Mercado - Colorado Mesa University Head Coach

Vivian Vu - BTS Alum & USWOA Official

3. Post your girls/women’s wrestling personal story on #HowSheWrestles


In July, a group of USA women’s freestyle wrestlers launched a campaign called How She Wrestles, which is a social media campaign used to highlight the stories of the USA’s female wrestlers. Headed by multiple-time Senior National Team member and University World bronze medalist Julia Salata, the idea came about after conversations about women’s freestyle coverage.


Girls and women in wrestling have tremendous personal stories, often not displayed through media outlets. The women who started the #HowSheWrestles campaign stepped up to share their stories. Today would be a great day for girls and women in wrestling to post their own story with words, photos and videos, using the #HowSheWrestles tag. Maybe women wrestlers should do this every year on National Girls and Women in Sports Day.

4. Check out websites that are focused entirely on wrestling for women and girls


There are a ton of online resources that people can access about wrestling for girls and women. It is great that in recent years, a number of nationally-focused websites and outlets have been developed focused entirely on female wrestling. We have three of them for you to check out today.


Transition Wrestling
https://www.transitionwrestling.com/


Wreaper Wrestling
https://www.wreaperwrestling.com/


American Women’s Wrestling
https://www.americanwomenswrestling.com/


There are many more out there, especially on the state and local levels. Spend some time and support these sites.

5. Register to compete in one of USA Wrestling’s High School National Recruiting Showcase events


There is no better way for a high school girl wrestler to celebrate the sport than to actually commit to wrestle in a tough wrestling event. USA Wrestling is hosting a series of eight High School National Recruiting Showcase qualifiers across the nation in March. These events will be open to all girls in high school (Grades 9-12). So far, qualifier events are finalized in Indiana, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Utah, Florida, Wisconsin and Virginia, with one more to come. Girls will be competing in freestyle at these qualifiers. The top five from each qualifier can later attend the High School National Recruiting Showcase tournament at the end of March at a site to be announced.


For more information on this series and all USA Wrestling events, visit
USAwrestlingevents.com

6. Donate to Wrestle Like A Girl, and find a way to volunteer to support the cause


Wrestling is unbelievably blessed to have its own non-profit advocacy group – Wrestle Like A Girl. Founded by two-time World bronze medalist Sally Roberts, with a board of fantastic leaders and a group of dedicated volunteers, Wrestle Like A Girl is working every single day to build the sport and create opportunity for women and girls to participate in wrestling. What a great cause!! As a non-profit, their success is based upon financial support from donors who believe in their mission.


Check out all the details about Wrestle Like A Girl at:
https://wrestlelikeagirl.org/

7. Post girls wrestling photos and videos using hashtag #NGWSD


Today, the world will unite under the hashtag #NGWSD. Girls and women in all kinds of sports will be making posts and celebrating their participation in sports and support for female athletes. Let’s make sure that everybody who visits that hashtag sees a ton of wrestling images. Challenge yourself to find photos or videos or other graphics that depict girls and women in wrestling. Show off your sport. Have some fun with it.


Have a great National Girls and Women in Sports Day