Rugby great Maggie Alphonsi says the rise of real girl power in English sport can be traced back to the London 2012 Olympics.
The Women’s World Cup kicked off in New Zealand this morning with England, odds-on favourites to lift the title, beating Fiji 84-19.
Sarah Hunter’s team say they are using as inspiration the Lionesses’ Euro 2022 triumph, but Alphonsi insists the Games of 10 years ago were the launchpad for women’s sport in the UK.
“2012 and those Olympics in London, that’s when I believe women’s sport and female athletes really began to get noticed,” said the 74-cap Londoner.
“I had played in two World Cup finals before then and the coverage was light years from what it became post-2012, when the likes of Jess Ennis, Nicola Adams and Victoria Pendleton won Olympic gold medals.
“That, for me, was the turning point. It seemed to empower girls and women all over the country. After that we all started to achieve.
"We won the 2014 World Cup in France, the hockey girls won the 2016 Rio Olympics, England’s cricketers won the 2017 World Cup and the netball team took 2018 Commonwealth gold.
“Then came the Lionesses this summer, winning the Euros and enjoying blanket media coverage. The WSL crowds since have been huge and Wembley was sold out again for them last night. It’s another level of change for women’s sport.”
This morning’s triple header, including England’s opener against Fiji, drew a 40,000-plus capacity crowd to Auckland’s Eden Park, a first for a women’s sport event in New Zealand.
The fact England were flown to the tournament in economy class - while Eddie Jones’ men's team travel business - shows there is some way still to go.
Their match fees were also slashed by 50 per cent to just £400 for the warm-up fixtures.
Alphonsi, who won the World Cup in 2014, admitted: “There is always room for improvement. We continue to strive to keep progressing.”
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