Title IX changes Orlando sports landscape
It’s unclear how many people realized President Richard Nixon was revolutionizing women’s athletics on this date in 1972.
When he signed legislation that is widely known as Title IX 48 years ago, Nixon legally required public schools to provide equal access to athletics for men and women.
The result of Title IX is clear in Central Florida, where high school athletes compete in a wide range of sports alongside their male peers. UCF and other schools throughout the state field highly competitive women’s programs, and female Olympians train in the region.
The Orlando Pride stand out as the peak result in the push for equality, with the city supporting a women’s pro team featuring players who are among the best to ever play the sport.
“Title IX has definitely impacted my life,” Pride star Alex Morgan told NCAA.org when asked about the legislation. “I actually did a paper on it in college. I was very interested in Title IX and its history, and I really respect the women who started out . ...
“I think that it’s great that I have this path that I’m able to create for myself, this career, and to be able to make a living playing soccer and doing what I want and doing what I love.”