'A Woman Will Never Become a Genuine Climber': An Outline of the History of Polish Female's Alpinism.

TATRA Mountains (Slovakia & Poland); POLAND

Mountaineering has been traditionally and even in the contemporary world been considered a 'male' discipline. Female Polish mountaineers historically faced this stereotype. The paths the Polish women traveled from the discovery of the 'Polish Alps' – the Tatra Mountains – to the exploration of the highest mountains in the twentieth century and twenty-first century, were complicated. They had to struggle not only with adversities resulting from the social and political situations Poland, but also cultural challenges. This is strongly articulated in their attitudes towards the mountains, their fight for acceptance their independence in climbing, as well as their perspectives as well as their male peer's perspectives on women's places in mountaineering. Despite the way being paved by Polish female climbers for the complete independence of women in the mountains, in the twenty-first century a veiled problem in remains in accepting their presence in competitive mountain climbing in Poland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of International Journal of the History of Sport is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)