Women athletes are redefining what 'strength' really means

This is a column by Shireen Ahmed, who writes opinion for CBC Sports. For more information about CBC's Opinion section, please see the FAQ.

As the month of March rolls around, I prepare to attend many events to celebrate International Women's Day. I like to celebrate women all the time and the global community of women in sports also gets extra amplification and well-deserved attention. 

I also prepare to avoid the discussions from the "I'm just playing devil's advocate" dudebro types who ponder why there isn't an "International Man's Day", arguing if feminists really wanted equality then there would be a day celebrating men, too. And questioning whether women are "tough enough" or "strong enough."

If only I had the energy to sit them down in person and explain the differences between equity and equality. It takes a level of mental strength and emotional bandwidth I do not have, and am not interested in spending. And that is okay, too. 

In addition to the recognition we offer women today, we should think about the acknowledgement of the less-than-glorious moments in sports. There have been moments of failure and struggle. Do we hold enough space and place for those? We should understand that women athletes will navigate those issues. Not speaking about mental-health challenges as part of the experience in sports can be dangerous. 

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One week ago, U.S. college soccer player Katie Meyers, was found in her room on the Stanford University campus. Meyer died by suicide. She was best known for her incredible goalkeeping performance in the 2019 NCAA finals that was pivotal in her Cardinals winning a national title. 

Her family is devastated, her teammates are heartbroken and many in the women's