Red Bull Formation is the future of women's sports: Red Bull Formation is flipping the script on Red Bull Rampage.

• Author: Beers, Heather

TEN years ago, Katie Holden headed to Virgin, Utah, eager to dig in--literally--to what she hoped would be her career path. With a shovel and pick, Holden spent hot, grueling days helping dig lines for the athletes who would drop down white-knuckle, red-rock cliffs at Red Bull Rampage, freeride mountain biking's premier competition.

At the time, the cadre of Red Bull Rampage competitors were all male. But Holden, an up-and-coming mountain bike racer and perennial goal-setter, could envision a future where she and other women were digging their own lines at Red Bull Rampage. Determined to get there, she volunteered every year as a digger. "I thought if I ever wanted a shot at doing this, I needed to surround myself by everyone that's doing it--be a part of it, be a sponge, and learn as much as I possibly can," she says.

Fast forward to 2021, and Red Bull Rampage Is still a men's-only event. Competitors are selected based mainly on recent performance and reputation, a subjective process that, to date, continues to favor the guys. But Holden--whose own professional trajectory has included a series of injuries, setbacks, and resilient metamorphosis--hasn't let that lack of gender parity hold her back.

In fact, she and a community of bad-ass women, supportive men, and progressive sponsors like Red Bull have carved an all-new line for women in the freeride world.

More on that in a minute.

WHERE THE GIRLS AT?

Gender parity has been an uphill battle since, well, at least 8th century BC with the dawn of the Greek Olympics.

Back in Olympia, women weren't allowed to compete in the games, and legend has it that married women weren't even allowed to watch the competitions (Perhaps to protect their delicate nature, as the male athletes were required to compete sans clothing, allegedly to prove they were males?).

The first modern Olympic games in 1896 didn't allow female athletes either, but four years later, 22 ladies (making up a paltry two percent of the nearly 1,000 athletes) were permitted to compete for the first time in--wait for it--croquet, tennis, sailing, equestrianism, and golf.

But times have changed, and progress has been made. Last summer, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games marked the biggest milestone in gender parity yet. Nearly 49 percent of the athletes participating were women, with the International Olympic Committee claiming these the "first gender-balanced Games in history."

So what is the future of how gender impacts sports? A continuation of men's and women's segregated sports, with the...