Why Don't Women Perform as Well at Sports as Men Do? Is It Because Women Are Not as Strong as Men Are?

The Question

Why don't women perform as well at sports as men do? Is it because women are not as strong as men are?

The Myth

Although it is commonly believed that women are not as skilled at sports as men are due to their lack of muscle strength, a recent study suggests that there may be other factors involved. The study points out that myths about the female body were quite common until fairly recently. In fact, it is only within the last 300 years that anatomists have begun to stress the differences between the male and female body. Until this time, the female body was merely regarded as a weaker, less efficient, form of the male body.

The Result

Because of these views on the female body, women were actively warned by their physicians not to engage in exercise, because their bodies were too weak to handle it. Men, on the other hand, have been actively exercising and engaging in sports for about as long as men have existed. Women have had a lot of ground to cover to make up for lost time, but they are accomplishing this admirably. Women's best marathon times are about 10 minutes behind men's. However, records for women have only been kept since 1964.