An uneven support base for women’s sport

It may not be a very dominant problem, but it certainly is consistent.
   
With the national championships for both the Wilfrid Laurier Univeristy women’s curling and women’s hockey teams within the next two weeks, it has come to my attention multiple times that there is a lack of credit given to the successful groups.
 
The Cord has been very thorough covering all teams and credit has been given where necessary. However, with the recent, but not surprising conclusion of the men’s hockey team’s season and the shocking ending to the men’s basketball team’s year, it almost seems as if the atmosphere around Laurier does not encourage the same support to the women’s teams.
   
When watching the women’s hockey team, it’s no question that their charisma, talent, dedication and style can mesmerize you for a whole sixty minutes. With only one loss in regulation during the regular season, they became the heavy favourites within the Ontario University Athletics’ (OUA) league, as well as having been ranked No.1 nationally in late January.
   
But despite this glory bestowed upon them by the league, the Laurier community still fails to recognize their excellence.
   
The men’s hockey team barely made the playoffs with a 9-17-2 record, and was ousted in the first round by the first-place Western Mustangs.

Their season turned into a flop, but their support continued throughout the season into their final games.
   
The same could be said about the men’s basketball teams, who would consistently play before the women’s team. Their fan support was nearly twice the size of the women’s, which would play right before the men took the court.
   
When their season came to an abrupt end, the school fell quiet, believing that their hopes of a championship year — already winded by the flop of the women’s soccer team and men’s football team — were impossible and inexistent.
   
But you can’t forget those women.
   
Consistently for the past few years, the women’s curling team have been an unstoppable force, producing an OUA championship title, a Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) championship title, and recently in January, an International Curling Championship in Kariuzawa, Japan.

In a thrilling victory over the team from Switzerland in extra ends, the women became victorious with a 9-8 win.

With the dawn of the 2012 CIS championship just a week away, the women’s curlers will try to defend their title from last year. But not many people have any idea when, where, or what will take place.

It’s hard to claim that curling has ever had a large fan base to begin with. It’s a very complex sport, and to watch an entire game, your mind must be trained to understand the rules.

But there is still little support given to the team, especially when they produce multiple championship titles.

So as the two women’s teams head off to their national championships, it’ll be interesting to see whether or not much support is given from the general population of Laurier.

Laurier Athletics will give coverage on the tournaments, but unlike the men’s teams, there will be little hype around campus if anything is produced.

For now, it’s just a simple problem with no solution.