Women have fought far too long and far too hard to even set foot into arguably the toughest sport out there. But they never gave up, and continue to succeed today, faster than ever before. Women’s wrestling is the fastest-growing game in the sports world today, with thousands of women trying it for the first time every year. Here is where and how this very trek began. Pinning Down Equality takes readers father back and deeper into the battles that women have fought, and won, to pin down equality in the world of amateur wrestling. In both a sequel and a prequel to his 2022 piece American Women in Amateur Wrestling 2000-2022 , Jason Norman now takes you back to the very beginnings of female wrestling. From the 1970s, when opponents went to their local school boards, and sometimes even to court, to keep women from competing. On to the 1980s, when the message that women’s wrestling was more than just a fad kept getting stronger and stronger. Then the 1990s, when America began to acknowledge these women not as female wrestlers, but as wrestlers, period. You’ll learn about, and often hear directly from, women who have made a difference for their gender is wrestling. Not just those on the mat; ladies who have torn it up as coaches, officials, and everywhere else are here as well. You’ll hear all about trendsetter Tricia Saunders, whose work made her the first female enshrined in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, and those who have received the Hall’s award named in her honor. Women who battled men and came out ahead in state title competition are here, as well as those who continue to fight to have their sport sanctioned in every state. There are sections on American women’s battles with the globe in world competition, and a little on the Olympics as well. Generations of women of the mat from every section of Old Glory, who took steps small and large for their sport, are profiled Highly detailed and meticulous in research, Pinning Down Equality is a must-read not just for wrestling fans, or even for sports fans, but for those looking for a message in the strength of people who, even after decades of opposition, refused to give up until the fight ended in their own personal victory. Foreword by female wrestling legend Afsoon Johnston Jason Norman is an award-winning sportswriter in Chesapeake, VA. This is his eleventh book, and second on female wrestling.