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Kate Mansur (Columbia '05) |
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Bio
 What was your experience in youth athletics? Were there opportunities available to you?
There were many youth sport opportunities in my area, I did mostly gymnastics, dance, some soccer and started field hockey when I was in third grade. The field hockey program was once a week during the fall and open to all the kids in my school district. It was a lot of fun and inspired my mom who works at the YMCA to start a youth field hockey program. That program was my next field hockey experience and I also started attending summer camps. Field hockey is very big in Western Massachusetts so I had a lot of opportunity to play outside of organized school teams. There were also programs like Futures that allowed selected players to practice during the winter and spring. Growing up I had a lot of opportunities to play field hockey as well as other sports and I don't think that I had to go above and beyond in any way to participate, it helped that my mother worked at the YMCA, so we were always there and always trying out the new sports programs.
How does an Ivy League experience affect your athletics pursuits?
I chose to come to an Ivy League school because on top of playing field hockey, I wanted to go to a top college. My other main choice was Georgetown, but once I visited Columbia I knew this is where I wanted to be. Playing at an Ivy League school has been a great experience. The Ivy League is a strong League for field hockey, so I've played against a lot of good competition. Also time restrictions on how long athletes can practice in season and out of season helps keep the emphasis on school, which allowed us the proper time for academics while also giving us good experience in being self-motivated-when we were on rest time and all workouts were optional, you really have to take it upon yourself to get to the gym to run and lift and get your teammates together to play. I don't think that studying at an Ivy League school and the demanding academics has held me back, because I enjoy school and like to be in a demanding academic as well as athletic atmosphere. I definitely feel that going to an Ivy League school, especially in New York City, has given me so many opportunities, for example the core curriculum at Columbia has given me a great liberal arts base, I've been able to get internships downtown during school and in the summer, in the classroom I am taught by world leaders in their field etc.
How has the national climate concerning women’s athletics changed since you were in school?
I have noticed some change, young girls have so many more people to look up to, for example the Olympic soccer team, WNBA players and that whole movement that its cool to be an athletic girl. Growing up I had a lot of gymnastics stars to look up to, but I guess I didn't know any soccer or basketball stars. I was born post-Title IX, so most of the things I think are normal, like women's athletes on scholarships at college, have always been there during my lifetime.
What obstacles still stand to young women who want to participate in athletics?
I guess I would say being stigmatized by their peers as a tom boy or rough girl. I never had any problem with it partially because I went to a small rural school and therefore everybody played outside all the time and climbed trees, not just the boys, and also partially because I had a twin brother, so there was never any problem when I played with the boys at recess or played on co-ed sports teams. Unfortunately I still see young girls who are too timid to go run around and play sports at recess, but its also partially the way you are raised. I had a mother and father who encouraged me to do anything and everything athletic. I guess the other major challenge for young women is the idea that girls play differently than men, in some ways its true, but usually I find it as a lame excuse used by coaches or refs to just not let the girls play. Its ok for boys to push around a little playing soccer and basketball, but often girls refs try to keep the game more civil and I suppose "dainty".
What do you see in the future for women's athletics, will it continue to expand?
Of course! It hasn't reached its pinnacle! I think that women's athletics still has a long way to go. For example boy's basketball games at my school were always attended better than girls games even when the girls were winning twice as many games, but then again everyday when you opened our school paper there was a big article about boy's basketball losing and a small article about the women winning. I suppose they feature boy's basketball first because there is more interest, but you have to ask yourself whether that interest is propagated by the lop-sided reporting? More people know how the boys basketball team is doing and when there games are because its the easiest thing to find in the paper, so more people go to the games. I think the main area where women's athletics will grow right now is in youth programs that get more girls out there on the sports fields, because there have been a couple pro-leagues like the women's soccer league that started and then folded because unfortunately I think they came a little too quickly. With more girls out there playing sports, the audience for women's pro-leagues will grow.
What has athletics done for young girls that choose to participate?
Athletics has been an integral part of my life from my youth to the present. I love playing and working out and expect it to always be an important part of my life. My active lifestyle helps me eat well, sleep enough and manage my schoolwork. Athletics does so many positive things for girls, gives them self-confidence, shows them how to work well with others, gives them a place to go run and play hard and keeps them healthy. Ideally athletics, sports, active pursuits should be a part of every person's life, but I think that they are especially important to girls and women.
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