Rhode Island continued to open doors for female athletes last weekend when Johnston High School hosted Jen Welter’s all girls football camp. Welter was hired as the first-ever female coach in the NFL when she joined the Arizona Cardinals a few years back.

In the past few months, we have seen some developments in girls sports which is great to see and in many ways, long overdue. Prior to this past weekend, we saw the Rhode Island Interscholastic League also introduce its first-ever girls wrestling state championships. Johnston High is also hosting the state’s first varsity flag football team.

At the camp, local girls got the chance to learn the game from Welter, coaches from the Johnston varsity club as well as representatives from the New England Patriots past and present. It was pretty cool to see the girls get coaching from such an impressive group of mentors.

As a sports nut myself, I am all for as much sports as possible. Football has always been a male-dominated game, but I am all for the introduction of girls leagues. There are female football leagues from the amateur to professional level (Welter was a professional player), so it is not unheard of the way it was, say 10 years ago. Either way, it looks like Rhode Island is getting prepared to expand the game further in the coming years which is great. Maybe it will one day be a varsity sport on the girls side.

Not only have women’s sports been getting some shine locally, but nationally as well.

Earlier this week, the WNBA held its annual draft, and as expected, Iowa sensation Caitlin Clark was selected first overall by Indiana.

In the past few months, Clark’s stardom has exploded and she has become one of the biggest names in basketball. She was the best offensive player at the college level and is considered to be one of the greatest shooters in the sport’s history, regardless of level or league. Check out her highlight reel on YouTube, it will blow you away.

Again, 10 years ago, we probably would never have heard of her. In today’s world, these women are finally getting their due. There is still plenty of progress to be made, but the past year or two has shone some real improvement in representing female athletes.

If you love sports, than you should be all in on whatever talent you can find. Providing platforms for athletes to showcase their skills, such as introducing new sports and leagues, or paying attention to sensations like Clark is where it needs to begin.

Although the world has grown too dependent on social media in many ways, it has also helped propel the coverage of female athletes. It is easier than ever to connect and engage, so let’s continue to encourage the practice of supporting our female athletes from the youth level on up, especially those right in our back yard.

It was Marathon Monday in Boston, continuing one of the greatest traditions in American sports. Each year I look forward to tipping my cap to those who participate.

People from all over the world travel to compete in this historic race. It never ceases to amaze me what human beings can accomplish on days like Marathon Monday, being able to run for 26-plus miles at a steady pace. It blows my mind.

There are certain sports that I will never be able to explain, I’ll never be able to fully wrap my head around.

Those sports include: distance running, pole vault, balance beam, and figure skating just to name a few.

How can a human run for 26 miles? How can a human launch themselves 20 feet in the air using just a pole? How can a human do a back flip and land on a 4-inch beam? How can someone spin, twirl and leap on ice skates?

Those are the sports that make my jaw hit the floor.

Seeing the annual Boston Marathon winners compete and break records is astounding. It seems like each year the times continue to dip. I used to be a regular jogger, in my prime I could bang out a 5-mile run, no problem.

But to do that five times and then some? Holy cow.

So, this is your annual reminder that anything is possible if you set your mind to it. I’m not exactly sure how sports like the ones I mentioned are possible. They defy logic. That, though, is inspirational in itself.