#3 Keeping the pressure on USA Gymnastics.  While Larry Nassar was sentenced on January 24, 2018, the gymnasts and their supporters have kept the pressure on for broader reforms and accountability within gymnastics and the broader Olympic and National Competition arena.  In January 2018, USA Gymnastics' entire Board of Directors resigned, President and CEO Kerry Perry resigned in September, followed by Interim CEO and President Mary Bono resigning in October.  In November, the USOC announced that it was starting the process to decertify USAG as the national governing body for gymnastics in the United States. And in December, USAG announced it was filing bankruptcy as the lawsuits continue to mount and distribution of insurance money needs to be decided.  The athletes will continue to be the voice for generations to come.  A key message is ensure discussions between parents and guardians and their children go beyond "Stranger Danger" and also address that those individuals known to the family must protect the child and that any feelings of uncomfortableness should be address with safe parents and guardians.  Watch Aly Raisman's speech at Nassar's sentencing.

#4 Amidst challenging conditions consisting of heavy rain, wind gusts of more than 25 miles per hour, and some of the coldest temperatures in 30 years, Desiree "Desi" Linden, 34 and two-time Olympian, won the 122nd Boston Marathon and became the first American woman to win the women's race since Lisa Larsen Weidenback did so in 1985 after pulling away from a competitive field.  Watch her winning moment here.

#6 What must it feel like to be on top of not just one, but two Winter Olympic sports?  Ester Ledecka became the first woman to ever win gold medals using two different types of equipment, a snowboard and skis, at a single Winter Olympic.  Ledecka is also the first woman to win gold in two separate disciplines at the same Winter Olympic Games.  Anfisa Reztsova previously won gold in two separate disciplines at different Olympics.  Watch her parallel giant slalom win here.

#8 Youth has its advantages. Chloe Kim, at age 17, became the youngest ever female Olympic gold medalist on snow when she won the Halfpipe. Kim's exposure and experience at competitions leading up to the PyeongChang games included being a four-time X Games gold medalist and the first woman to win two gold medals in snowboarding at the Youth Olympic Games. Watch her gold medal performance here.

  

#10 Most Important Moment in Women's Sports 2018

Since our founding in 1997, REAL SPORTS, The Authority in Women's Sports, provides authentic coverage of the diverse world of women's sports. Join us as we make our selections of the Top Moments in Sports for 2018 and name our Sportsperson of the Year.  We welcome our readers engagement and encourage you to share your thoughts regarding our selections as well as your most memorable moments.

#10 There's a sure fire way to capture the imagination of a crowd, nation, and worldwide viewership while also earning the respect of your peers.  


At the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games, Mirai Nagasu became the first American woman to land a triple axel at the Olympics.  She became the third woman in the history of the Winter games to do so.  Click to watch the athletic accomplishment.

#6 Abiding by Your Principles — International Olympic Committee (IOC) Adds Anti-discrimination Clause to Host City Contracts

REAL SPORTS Most Important Moments in Sports 2014 edition

Shortly before the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, a series of anti-gay “propaganda” laws were announced by Russian authorities. Active and former Olympians began protests before the Games began and continued throughout the events. The athletes cited Principle 6 of the Olympic Charter, which states: “Any form of discrimination with regard to a country or person on grounds of race, religion, politics, gender or otherwise is incompatible with belonging to the Olympic movement.”

American Apparel partnered with All Out and Athlete Ally to produce and distribute
Principle 6 gear online and in their stores.

The U.S. government joined in the protests, with the Sochi Games becoming the first since 2000 at which the opening ceremonies were not attended by the president, vice president or first lady. President Barack Obama strengthened the protest by naming openly gay athletes to the official United States delegation, which was led by former Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano. Ice hockey player Caitlin Cahow, figure skating legend Brian Boitano and tennis legend Billie Jean King all sat with the delegation at either the opening or closing ceremonies.

In response to the protests and to pressure from organizations including Athlete Ally and Human Rights Watch, the International Olympic Committee announced in September that an anti-discrimination clause based on Principle 6 will be included in the binding contract between the IOC and host cities. The IOC has informed the three finalist cities competing for the 2022 Winter Olympics – Oslo, Norway, Almaty, Kazakhstan, and Beijing – of the change to the final contract.

The move is expected to help avoid a repeat of the furor surrounding the Sochi Olympics, where many athletes and spectators feared an increase in arrests or homophobic attacks. In developing and announcing the anti-discrimination clause, the IOC is putting pressure on other athletic governing bodies to take similar steps when selecting sites for their events. FIFA, soccer’s governing body, has the men’s World Cup scheduled for Russia in 2018, and in Qatar – where homosexuality is illegal – in 2022. Whether it is too late to have an effect on those events is debatable, but the IOC’s move is well received, and we applaud it. [RS]