According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, girls are dropping out of sports at twice the rate of boys by age 14; this can be due to factors such as lack of access and social stigma. But team sports have many benefits—development of social skills, increased health, and stress management are just a few.
There is a lesser-known team sport that has recently been brought to the forefront: women’s rugby. In July, the US women’s rugby sevens team took home their first ever Olympic medal, inspiring many and skyrocketing interest in girls’ rugby. But you don’t have to be an elite athlete to participate—girls’ rugby is accessible right here in the Pacific Northwest.
Photograph courtesy of Girls Rugby
The Bellingham-based chapter of Girls Rugby, a national organization, caters to girls in grades 2-8, with teams split based on age. Girls play non-contact rugby, using flags in the place of traditional tackling. Girls Rugby seeks to combine learning athletic skills along with life skills, focusing on values such as leadership, respect, sportsmanship, and teamwork.
If you don’t fall in that 2nd-8th grade age range, never fear! Older girls can play through the Chuckanut Bay Rugby Club, an organization dedicated to developing rugby in the Pacific Northwest. The club offers a variety of girls rugby programs (along with men’s teams), with ages ranging from middle school to adult, and a choice between contact and non-contact teams.
These organizations are working to make rugby and its benefits accessible to girls and women of all ages. And although it may seem intimidating, if you’ve been looking to participate in a team sport, give it a try! You might just love it.
