Until recently, men and women rarely competed with each other in the ring, as it was considered unfair. However, this slowly changed when comedian Andy Kaufman paved the way for mixed competitive wrestling. Although his matches were organized, he ended up publicly announcing himself as the “Intergender Champion.” Afterward, he openly challenged any woman to try to defeat him in the ring.
Mixed competitive wrestling is typically a match that takes place between a man and a woman. However, matches are occasionally promoted as team matches. This sport had a rise in popularity from the mid-1990s and progressed into the early 2000s. Mixed wrestling was promoted and seen primarily in North America on television shows such as the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), now known like WWE or World Wrestling Entertainment. In addition, there is the Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and the World Championship Wrestling.
Mixed competitive wrestling emerged in the 1950s, an era when it was unheard of for women to be in the ring. A time when men were men and women were supposed to be women. Who knew they could step into the ring and fight and hold the greatest of men? The female wrestlers of this time helped pave the way for today’s mixed wrestling competitors. They definitely had their own idea of what the definition of girl power should be.
Bring in the most modern era of mixed competitive wrestling and you will see tough and nail-biting competitions between male and female opponents. Today’s women who participate in this sport can not only kick tail, but manage other fighters and run companies while doing it. These are women you don’t want to mess with. Proving once again, women are not only multi-talented, they can multitask as well. The sport has entered the new millennium, introducing title belts and matches specifically geared towards women, or Divas, as they are called. Still, they have a chance to go head-to-head with the man who held the title in any other championship match.
Over time, changes have been made to the rules and regulations pertaining to this sport. However, that doesn’t take away from the thrill and excitement of seeing it. Those who participate will likely always continue to make it as interesting as ever by adding their own special brand of talent to the mix, ensuring that mixed competitive wrestling is here to stay.