Tokyo Games boast equal gender participation for first time

Those pioneers competed across five sports, among them croquet and equestrian.“Tokyo 2020 is predicted to be the most gender equal yet with female participation,” the IOC said.The new opportunities come in several sports and several sizes: Great Britain, for example, is sending more women than men to the Olympics for the first time. Images shared on social media of the women’s grossly underequipped weight room became the symbol for the injustices all female athletes have suffered in the shadow of men.Former Stanford water polo player Maggie Steffens said the gender inequality at the NCAA tournament “hurt my heart to see” but was also an eye-opener. Five new sports were added this year — baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, sports climbing and surfing — and the IOC demanded they have equal numbers of men and women.There are still large gaps to close, particularly in funding and prize money outside of the Olympics.