Tokyo Games boast equal gender participation for first time

FILE - In this May 29, 2016, file photo, Grace Luczak, right, of the United States, compete at the Women's Pair Final race at the Rowing World Cup on Lake Rotsee in Lucerne, Switzerland. Luczak had left competitive rowing and taken a real job when a move toward gender equity at the Tokyo Games lured her back into a boat. Events were deliberately added to create a more inclusive Olympics and for Luczak it meant four new seats on the U.S. women's rowing team. (Urs Flueeler/Keystone via AP, File)

FILE - In this July 20, 2021, file photo, an athlete trains at the weightlifting training hall at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 20, 2021, in Tokyo. The Tokyo Games have 18 new events this year and will be the first with nearly equal gender participation. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek, File)

FILE - In this July 21, 2021, file photo, Sweden's Stina Blackstenius (11) celebrates scoring her side's second goal against the United States during a women's soccer match at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in Tokyo. The Tokyo Games have 18 new events this year and will be the first with nearly equal gender participation. (AP Photo/Ricardo Mazalan, File)

FILE - In this July 20, 2021, file photo, Germany's Laura Ludwig throws the ball during a Beach Volleyball training session ahead of the 2020 Summer Olympics, in Tokyo. The Tokyo Games have 18 new events this year and will be the first with nearly equal gender participation. (AP Photo/Mark Baker, File)

FILE - In this April 27, 2021, file photo, Maggie Steffens, a member of the U.S. women's water polo team, trains at MWR Aquatic Training Center in Los Alamitos, Calif. The Tokyo Games have 18 new events this year and will be the first with nearly equal gender participation. There's still large gaps to close, particularly in funding and prize money outside of the Olympics. Steffens this year saw a long push for equal pay at one particular tournament come to fruition and posted a photo of the triumph labeled #equalpay. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)