AP Photo/Suzanne Vlamis / AP Photo/David Vincent / AP Photo/Tim Ireland From left to right: Mary Lou Retton, Megan Rapinoe, and Serena Williams.
- Multi-sport American athlete Babe Didrikson Zaharias was breaking boundaries in sports in the early 1900s. She was voted the Greatest Female Athlete of the first half of the 20th century by the Associated Press.
- The Williams sisters have redefined women in tennis and are credited with pioneering a game in which women are focused on power.
- The United States Women's National Team has had several athletes become icons since the 1990s. Most recently, Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe have joined the likes of Mia Hamm and Abby Wambach as iconic members of the team.
- While gymnastics has become a more popular sport over time, Nadia Comaneci is credited with bringing attention to the sport worldwide during the 1976 and 1980 Summer Olympics.
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During the last century, women in sports have been making an impact and serving as inspirations to those who wish to accomplish the same.
It started with names like Wilma Rudolph and Billie Jean King but has grown so much more to include the Williams sisters, Megan Rapinoe, and Katie Ledecky.
According to a 2018 Nielsen report on the rise of women's sports, 84% of general sports fans now have an interest in women's sports.
Below, we take you through the 36 most iconic female athletes that have helped put women's sports in the spotlight.