In a male dominated world of sports, interest has been increasing in women athletes. The power of the internet and TV outlets have made information about these stars more freely available and coverage of events is easier to access than ever before. Some of these ladies are household names and if not, certainly on the way to becoming so. Every success by these ladies puts female sports women even more in the eye of the public.
And that is their true aim, to encourage women and spur them on. To give them the belief that it can be done. These ladies inspire women all around the world to keep the faith, keep practising and training for the chosen sport that they love. They have to be careful yet also smart as young women will look up to them as role models in the very fickle world that we live in today. Women athletes can have many detractors, so it's important that they stay strong in the face of adversity.
In the world of female tennis, has there been a bigger name to come along than Serena Williams? Beginning to push on in years now, she first arrived on the scene turning pro in 1995. Now nearly 40, her last challenge remains to equal or pass Margaret Court's record of 24 Grand Slam singles wins. Stuck on 23, she seems frustrated at her failure to do so and the clock is ticking. This year's Wimbledon seems like a great chance to do so due to her known prowess on grass surfaces.
Hailing from the small nation of the Republic of Ireland, Taylor has brought both attention to the country and to the sport of boxing. Success at both amateur and now professional level brought improved coverage to female boxing. A massively popular character with the public, she is currently the undisputed champion in the lightweight division. Hugely successful in the 2012 Olympics, failure in 2016 made her determined to come back even stronger and she is a great hero to many.
In horse racing, a sport which has been traditionally competed by men, great strides have been made in recent years by female jockeys. None more so than this year, when Rachael Blackmore became the first woman to win the Grand National. Riding second favourite Minella Times to victory at odds of 11/1, any online casino player who had backed her to win would have been jumping for joy as she crossed the line. An important milestone in the sport, hopefully this is the first of many and has shone a big spotlight on the sport for women.
Making history again for the masses of women worldwide, this time in another male dominated sport, darts. While possibly not the best known name on this list, Sherrocks victory was vitally important as darts has a stereotypical reputation of being played by unhealthy, middle aged men. Beating Ted Evetts to secure passage to the second round, she became a star overnight and received great praise on social media. Possibly not the most appealing sport for women, but certainly this was a very significant result and put darts on the map for many who may not have considered it before. It also gave current women players a huge boost in confidence.
Up there with the most famous of female golfers, Michelle Wie seems to have been around forever. Whilst only winning one Major, quite some time ago in 2014, she is well known due to her blistering start in the golf world. She was the youngest player that qualified to play in a USGA amateur championship event at the tender age of 10. Before she was 16, she had turned pro and was already in the spotlight with the public following her every move. Big sports deals followed and while she may not have been as successful as everyone had hoped, she certainly was a trailblazer in recent times for the world of golf. Interest in women's golf has surged, with competitors from around the globe taking part and claiming victory in big events.
While Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are certainly household names, increasingly skilful ladies have been hitting the soccer pitch too. While Brazilian Marta seems to have more legendary status, Rapinoe seems to have endeared herself to women worldwide by being both heard on and off the pitch. Winning numerous events with the United States Women's National Team such as the FIFA Women's World Cup and SheBelievesCup to name but two, she is currently heading off to the Olympics to try add another gold medal to her collection.
In the public spotlight at the moment for trying to ensure the footballing ladies turning out for America receive equal treatment to their male counterparts. It has proved to be a difficult road and while there have been pay rises, the same level of pay has yet to be achieved. But she is not giving up and women from all backgrounds are uniting behind her. A truly strong and influential character to all ladies out there.
The first of a now long list of female fighters to compete in the UFC, Rousey was an established MMA fighter who was made the first ever female champion at bantamweight and defended her belt successfully in the first ever female fight in the history of UFC. Later in her career, she changed sports to wrestling, also winning titles in this crossover adventure. She has been seen as a pioneer for women worldwide in this sport and as the years have gone by, interest has soared in female UFC fights. Women fighters are now very well known and the standards of training and quality of fights has improved dramatically.
This is only a small selection of the female superstars that have come to the forefront of their respective sports over the years. There are many other promising and established women athletes that have the power to inspire females of all ages to get motivated or involved in something. It's amazing the effect a certain performer can have on the mind, it could change your life or push you on to achieve better things. If you think it can't be done, just look at all these characters who have tried and succeeded. However, if you are simply happy at home playing blackjack online, then that works too!
