During high school, I proudly wore blue and gold apparel that read “Lady Vikings Track and Field” on the front. Each time my team entered the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletics Center in Boston for our track meets, we were proud to be the Lady Vikings and ready to take on whatever came to us.
Whenever we got new uniforms or even just our warm-up gear for a new season, my coach would comment on how we should not be called the "Lady Vikings." One of his reasons for this was how comfortable my team was with one another, and our typical interactions could not be defined as "ladylike." Another reason was because of the misogyny surrounding the need to add “Lady” to our team name, in order to distinguish our gender. Oh, and he also thought just “Vikings” was a lot more badass compared to “Lady Vikings.”
I would laugh whenever he made this comment, and I'd joke that we are the least ladylike team I have encountered. But I never agreed that we should omit the “Lady” from our team name. I felt pride in being the Lady Vikings, and I think it should stay that way for all-women’s sports teams.
Being a part of an all-women’s team created a sense of community that I will never forget. From goofing off at each practice to supporting our fellow Lady Vikings at each meet, the love and pride never left our team.
If we were to get rid of the “Lady” in our team name, nothing would distinguish us from the men’s team at our school. I am not saying that I desire a complete separation from them, but there is a sense of fulfillment in having our own identity as a team. We were able to grow as a team and a family, and we had our own accomplishments as Lady Vikings.
In today’s society, many people argue for getting rid of the "Lady," "Women," "Girl," or whatever it is that comes before a team name. I know that this is a movement in light of unequal pay for men and women’s teams, and I am not condoning this misogyny. I am in favor of equal pay for men and women, and I would consider myself a feminist.
I am also in favor or co-ed sports, like I stated before. But I do not necessarily agree that men’s and women’s sports should be entirely separated. When they are separated, however (which is common in high school and collegiate athletics), I think that women should take pride in being part of an all-women's team.