They didn't have college scholarships for women. Had they done that at the time, I may have stayed on for another two Olympics, but the opportunities were not available to women that they have today.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
As a result of Title IX, and a new generation of parents who want their daughters to have the opportunities they never had, women's sports have arrived.
We live in a world where sports have the potential to bridge the gap between racism, sexism and discrimination. The 2012 Olympic Games was a great start but hopefully what these games taught us is that if women are given an opportunity on an equal playing field the possibilities for women are endless.
A girl didn't get an athletic scholarship until the fall of 1972 for the very first time.
Women's sports is still in its infancy. The beginning of women's sports in the United States started in 1972, with the passage of Title 9 for girls to finally get athletic scholarships.
That's the awesome part. Little girls now have a chance to look up and see women playing soccer, basketball, softball and now hockey - and know they can win a gold medal, too.
I think women athletes who have been successful need to help other sports, those sports that are just emerging. That's what I've been thinking about and looking forward to.
I was the youngest of seven kids and I would not have been able to go to college without an athletic scholarship.
The Olympic dream was born in 2010 during the qualifications to Vancouver. And when I was watching those Olympics from the sidelines, I felt that I wanted to have my Games. I understood that it wouldn't be easy to make them, especially now that in Russia there are a lot of strong girls.
The Olympics were life-changing for me. I felt I went in as a girl and came out as a woman.
Everything about the Olympics was first class, and women were treated as athletes and equals.