🚣 Alice Milliat: Rower 🚣

🚣 Alice Milliat: Rower 🚣

Today I am going to be retelling the story of Alice Milliat whom I read about in Rebel Girls: Champions. So, here I go!

"I came up against a solid wall of refusal, which directly led to the creation of the Women's World Games." - Alice M.

Alice was born in France in 1884, and she studied to become a teacher and translator. But when she played sports like hockey, swimming, and rowing she felt stronger and more alive. Alice wanted to play in the Olympic Games. But the IOC ( International Olympic Commitee ) thought that sports were much too violent for "soft" women. That's ridiculous, thought Alice. Still she tried to ask IOC to let women compete in the track and field program. When they said no, she started the FSFI ( Fédération Sportive Féminine Internationale ), which 3 years later, held a big one-day sporting event. Thousands of people came to watch as powerful women performed the things that they thought only men could do and they even broke 18 WORLD records. The IOC wanted the FSFI to stop but it was Alice's turn to say no. The FSFI held even more competions like these and started to call them the Women's World Games. Finally, more than 70 years later when Alice, FSFI, and the Women's World Games were long gone, women were finally able to compete in the Olympic Games. 

I learned that if you really believe that something is possible that you should do anything to get it. Be determined and persistent.