Abstract
Young upper-class Romanians, encouraged by British and French sports club models, created select gentlemen's clubs in the second part of the nineteenth and the early twentieth centuries. They practised sports as they observed and travelled to countries they admired for study and leisure. Romanian sports clubs embraced important benefits, including health, socialization, and leisure pursuits, creating a platform for male and female participants to compete in sports matches. Following World War I, women from both the upper and elite middle classes, as well as those from the lower middle class, contributed to women's emancipation by participating in national and international sports competitions. This article examines an overlooked subject in the literature, concentrating on the progress of women and the development of gender roles in sports in Romania during the interwar period.
Introduction
The Romanian story of women's emancipation through sports during the interwar period has remained relatively underexplored, making it a significant historical example for current discussions and analyses of gender dynamics. This research addresses several enduring topics, including women's bodies and their roles in society, the expectations placed on women in different sports, the traditionally masculine attributes that some female athletes develop through participating in demanding sports, and the experiences of female athletes in national and international sports competitions.
In the previous decade, historians and sociologists, including Doina Pasca Harsanyi, Maria Bucur, Bogdan Popa, Alin Ciupală, Fiona Skillen, Jean Williams, Sheree Bekker, and Stephen Mumford, have examined various aspects of women's emancipation, the development of sports movements, and the experiences of men and women in athletic competitions across Europe and the United States through quantitative and qualitative investigations. However, the topic of Romanian women's participation in professional sports competitions alongside men during the interwar period remains insufficiently studied as a form of empowerment. 1 Consequently, I analyzed historical sources, including daily papers, sports publications, magazine articles, and annual club reports. The secondary literature provided valuable input from books and articles on women's history, leisure, sports history, as well as nation-building and state formation processes.
This article examines the empowerment of Romanian women of all classes through sports during the interwar years. It answers questions about how female Romanian athletes experienced sports opportunities and competitions as tools for their emancipation and the enhancement of their roles in society, thereby contributing to changing societal perspectives regarding gender roles. Depicting how the press illustrated women's athletic achievements and the obstacles and perceptions surrounding them is crucial for elucidating women's experiences in sports for both Romanian and international audiences. The Romanian press revealed women's experiences and beliefs across various sectors of society, including sports. Newspapers and magazines reported on sports competitions, the interactions between male and female athletes, the challenges women faced, the norms and rules that were challenged regarding women's participation in sports, and prevalent gender stereotypes.
Despite advancements in gender and sports in the interwar years, women continued to face challenges. The Romanian state was reluctant to support women in their sports careers, such as becoming aviators or racing drivers. It could not allocate sufficient resources for modernizing sports facilities and installations and supporting women's participation in international competitions, as men competed in greater numbers. Although women from wealthy families could purchase horses, automobiles, or aeroplanes, they encountered other obstacles, such as obtaining a pilot's license. An illustrative example is that of Ioana Cantacuzino, who achieved her pilot's brevet in 1930 after lengthy discussions with the Romanian aviation authorities. 2 Lower-middle-class women faced greater difficulties in pursuing a sports career without financial sponsorship from private initiatives or government funding.
Thus, for upper-class women, including Ioana Cantacuzino, Coletta Polizu-Micșunești, Marina Știrbey, and others, sports were primarily associated with leisure, prestige, and sociability. For elite middle-class women, including Colette Blank, Mia Mateescu, Romica Popp, Elena Caragiani-Stoenescu, and Irina Vulturescu, as well as lower-middle-class women such as Smaranda Brăescu, playing sports also provided an occasion for affirmation, public visibility, economic autonomy, and social mobility, allowing them to pursue a profession despite the hardships they encountered. Sports competitions and clubs provided opportunities for women to connect, build networks, and engage in shared activities, irrespective of their motivations or social class.
A key political development, the building of Greater Romania (in Romanian, România Mare), occurred in 1918, with the unification of the Old Kingdom of Romania and the historical territories where Romanians were the majority: Transylvania, Bukovina, and Banat (under the rule of the Austro-Hungarian Empire) and Bessarabia (under the rule of the Russian Empire). Professional competitions were organized in Bucharest, the capital city, and Sinaia, a mountain sports resort labeled ‘Romania's Saint Moritz’, 3 and following the First World War, also in Brașov, Arad, and Cluj. These regions featured various ethnic groups, including Hungarians, Germans, and Jews, alongside Romanians, each with distinct customs, habits, and lifestyles.
Romania displayed similarities and differences with Central and Western European countries during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Romania detached from Ottoman influence, and, shortly thereafter, young members of the upper class, followed by the emerging elite middle class, began studying at French and German universities. 4 This led to significant changes in clothing, mindset, urban development, architecture, culture, and politics. 5 The differences were connected to later developments in Romania, from the Romanian state's formation in 1859 (the union of Wallachia and Moldova), to the progress in women's emancipation, sports development, and other areas. In May 1866, a foreign prince ascended the throne. 6 According to the historian Doina Pasca Harsanyi, Karl von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen's rise to power connected Romania to Europe, as he belonged to a prominent Western European dynasty. 7 Advancements in railway and bridge infrastructure contributed to the country's modernization.
Historical Context of Gender in Romania
Romanian women's emancipation was connected to the broader context of European history. Historians Sylvia Paletschek and Bianca Pietrow-Ennker argued, ‘The point in time in which organized women's emancipation movements evolved coincides with the formation of the modern nation-state’. 8
Women, who were previously predominantly seen in traditional roles following philanthropic and cultural pursuits, began participating in more activities and public events in the second part of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as a few women from the upper classes and bourgeoisie sought to challenge societal norms. Women typically played the roles of mothers and good Christians, and, less so, citizens with civil and political rights. 9 They supported social programmes, artistic patronage, and writing. 10 Romanian women's emancipation was somewhat delayed compared to Western and Central European states (e.g. in terms of building associations and demanding social and political rights). 11 The Romanian writer and women's rights activist Calypso Corneliu-Botez (1880–1933) wrote, ‘In 1848, for the first time we meet the Romanian woman taking part in a battle of ideas, in the fight for social emancipation’. 12 Since the late nineteenth century, women's emancipation had focused on social work and education. Demands for civil and political rights led upper- and emerging middle-class women to form learned societies, such as the ‘Liga Femeilor din România’ [Romanian Women's League] in 1895, thereby pursuing women's rights and helping underprivileged people. 13
During the reign of Carol I, a two-party system of liberals and conservatives governed Romania, influenced by the British model and favoured by the census vote. Suffrage was introduced after World War I only for male citizens, while women were denied the right to vote. 14 By contrast, the Netherlands, for instance, enacted women's suffrage in 1917 15 and Norway in 1907, 16 both of which were early successes in advancing women's political rights and participation in public life. World War I gave Romanian and European women unique opportunities to serve as nurses, assisting in hospitals and on the front lines. 17 Historian Maria Bucur highlighted that several women emerged as inspirational figures in Romania, including Queen Maria of Romania (1875–1938) and the soldier Ecaterina Teodoriu (1894–1917) who died on the front. 18 Romania experienced significant changes in the interwar years, becoming a more inclusive and progressive society, aligning itself with countries from Central and Western Europe. In her recent chapter on feminism in interwar Romania, Maria Bucur stated that interwar Romania was indisputably the scene of an ‘efflorescence of feminism’. 19 Numerous women began pursuing careers such as engineering, teaching, law, and athletics, as emphasized by Cristina Sircuța. 20
Sports Development and the Emergence of Modern Sports Clubs in the Old Kingdom of Romania
In contrast to Romania, England and France had numerous sports associations, urban developments, and modern sports facilities (such as equipment, fields, and pools), established in the nineteenth century or earlier. 21
George Costescu (1881–1971), a sports journalist and author of a 1937 book on the history of sports in Romania, noted that at the beginning of the twentieth century, a few young men from the country's upper classes, returning from their studies, especially from France, founded modern sports clubs to promote a sports movement. 22 Sports historian Bogdan Popa argued that wealthy young Romanians who studied abroad became increasingly interested in playing sports in the early twentieth century; they also gained knowledge from German and British employees working in the Romanian industry, who benefited from a longer history of practising modern sports. 23 Private initiatives supported the development of a sports movement before and after World War I. George Valentin Bibescu, Ion (Jean) Cămărășescu, George Alexandru Plagino, and others played key roles in supporting the Romanian sports movement. 24 Their wives, Princess Martha Bibescu, Yvonne Cămărăşescu, and Maria-Nicola (Colette) Plagino (1885–1957), 25 participated in tennis, automobile racing, and aviation. Romanian royal family members (e.g. Prince Carol, Prince Nicolae and Princess Ileana) endorsed the sports movement, engaged in tennis, motor racing, yachting, bobsleigh, aviation, and other sports, and even supported the creation of sports clubs (e.g. Clubul Sportiv Român [the Romanian Sports Club] in 1909). 26
The British pattern of leisure and sociability was apparent in Jockey Clubul Român [the Romanian Jockey Club]. The French Pattern was traceable in Automobil Clubul Român [A.C.R., the Romanian Automobile Club], the Romanian Aero Club, Tennis-Clubului Român [T.C.R, the Romanian Tennis Club], and Liga Națională Aeriană [L.N.A., the National Air League]. The A.C.R. also assumed certain characteristic patterns of the British Automobile Club (e.g. admission criteria, production of city maps, building garages, and promoting various sports activities). 27 The Romanian elite's lifestyle changed because of the establishment of modern sports clubs labelled in society as elite venues of ‘male sociability’, especially the Jockey Club. These associations played a fundamental role in the growth of sports in the Old Kingdom of Romania, significantly contributing to the country's modernization before World War I.
Several sports were developed, including athletics, horse riding, tennis, motorsports, and winter sports. 28 Following this path, ‘chronologically, horse riding is the first to know professionalism, then, at the end of the 19th century, followed by cycling, and after World War I – by boxing and football’. 29 In the early twentieth century, national competitions were organized, for example, in tennis, horse riding, automobile racing, ice-skating, sledding, and bobsleigh. Young people participated in sports to improve their physical health and well-being. 30 The year 1912 marked the birth of Federația Societăților de Sport din România [F.S.S.R., the Federation of Romanian Sports Societies], founded on December 1 in the Automobile Club's salon. Crown Prince Ferdinand served as the president, while his son, Prince Carol, was secretary general. 31 The F.S.S.R. reflected a strong commitment to promoting sports through private initiatives rather than state involvement, and its activity was considered a pioneering action in Romanian sports. 32
The Historical Context of Women's Commitment to Sports
In Romania, starting in the second half of the nineteenth century, women from aristocratic and newly wealthy families began participating in amateur sports and leisure activities. This helped women from the upper and elite middle classes to enter a predominantly male-dominated field and accumulate visibility in public life, moving beyond the traditional roles typically reserved for women, such as engaging in charity work. 33
In the early twentieth century, women also began competing in an organized manner with male players, including in national tennis, horse riding, bobsleigh, and sledding competitions. As Sheree Bekker and Stephen Mumford stated, ‘Sportswomen were showing that far from being an “unsuitable” activity for women, sport was a pathway to liberation’, 34 starting in the early twentieth century. Women's clothing in sports competitions in public spaces was of interest. These advancements occurred relatively early and had a visible impact, particularly in Western European countries. 35 Kat Jungnickel's informative study exposed the idea that ‘to partake, women had to resist and often actively challenge prevailing ideas that many sports and physical activities are incompatible with their sex’. 36 Regarding this transformative process, Fiona Skillen openly noted in her helpful article that, ‘the interwar years also witnessed the rapid growth of organized sport’. 37
Changes appeared slowly at all levels of Romanian society. Unlike England, where women from the working middle class played sports including golf, swimming, tennis, and hockey, Romania did not substantially develop a working middle class. Romania continued striving to become a modern, industrialized country and the need for more working-class women in different sectors of society was already noted in several Western European countries. 38
Romanian elite sports clubs emerged as spaces for leisure and male sociability. However, some also served as centres for women's ongoing struggle for emancipation. These clubs allowed women to gather and acquire visibility in the public sphere by competing in organized sports competitions and to thus move beyond their traditional roles in motherhood and charity work. A helpful example is Clubul Călăreților din București [C.C.B., the Bucharest Horsemen's Club], where women could compete alongside men for the first time in an equine contest in 1912. Upon organizing its second national equestrian competition, women were identified as fully qualified to compete alongside men in equestrian events. 39
Another element of women's inclusion is illustrated in Article 10 of Automobil Club Regal Român [A.C.R.R., the Romanian Royal Automobile Club], which granted membership to women; furthermore, Tennis Clubul Regal Român [T.C.R.R., the Romanian Royal Tennis Club] also allowed women to become members, despite certain membership restrictions, such as the need for two recommendations and annual subscription fees. While the clubs primarily included wealthy members, outstanding athletic performance allowed sportswomen from modest backgrounds to gain access to sports organizations. Social gatherings in sports clubs, such as those organized by the A.C.R.R and T.C.R.R. and other clubs, as well as competitions permitted women to be seen and recognized as athletes. Despite these advancements, they still faced bureaucratic hardships and misconceptions. However, from a societal progress perspective, the dimension of gender equality in Romania was enriched by the fact that women gained entrance to sports clubs and competed alongside men in more organized sporting competitions during the interwar years. In neighbouring Poland, modern sports clubs developed only after World War I and ‘women who dared to break the stereotypes faced criticism from men, but also from conservative women’. 40 Women's contribution to sports was recognized from outside the country: ‘It was not until women's success in sports on the international stage that stereotypes were broken, and female athletes became pioneers in the pursuit of equality’. 41
The Revival of the Sports Movement in the Interwar Years
The Old Kingdom of Romania experienced different developments in the sports movement compared to Transylvania and Banat (considering the impact of Austro-Hungarian influence until 1918). In Transylvanian cities, such as Sibiu, Brașov, and Cluj, modern sports associations were created earlier, in the last quarter of the nineteenth century, and sports (e.g. ice skating and skiing) were practiced in a more organized manner, even before the Old Kingdom of Romania. 42 As the country's territories and population doubled, divergences emerged in the political, administrative, and sports arenas between the capital city of Bucharest and the new regions, particularly Transylvania, which was the most urban and developed region among the historical provinces. Records from 1930 reveal that Romania's total population was 18,057,028, with Romanians accounting for approximately 72 percent of this figure, while other significant minorities included Hungarians, Jews, and Germans. 43 Nearly 80 percent of the population resided in rural areas. 44
The F.S.S.R. was reorganized territorially into seven sports regions: West (Banat, Arad, and Hunedoara), Brașov (including Sibiu), Cluj, Bukovina, Moldova, Muntenia, and Dobrogea, uniting the country's old and new regions. 45 National teams were formed to ensure ethnic proportionality. However, dissatisfaction arose when Romanians outnumbered, for instance, the ethnic Hungarians and Germans. Historian Florin Faje argued that the relationship between Bucharest and the newly incorporated regions faced many challenges because the F.S.S.R. tried to impose a national centralization of sports and regulations, triggering the disappointment of many sports associations from Transylvania, Bessarabia, and Bukovina. 46 Discrepancies were evident across ethnic groups in the Transylvania region. Ethnic minorities, including Hungarians, Germans, and Jews, who had long-established associations, primarily participated in sports competitions organized by their own clubs. They were reluctant to be subordinated to the F.S.S.R., which was based in Bucharest, the capital city. Transylvania experienced an earlier institutionalization and urbanization, primarily due to Austria-Hungary's influence, allowing sports clubs to develop sooner and in greater numbers than in Bucharest. 47 Stadiums were erected, and these clubs organized international competitions, linking themselves to Central and Western European networks when Romania began to develop modern sports clubs and competitions. After 1918, the Romanian state aimed to incorporate these associations into national federations, joining the F.S.S.R.; the institution was seen as an instrument of public utility with educational and social roles, and the state provided financial support to enhance the country's sports movement. 48 The F.S.S.R. was reorganized into Uniunea Federaților Sportive din România [U.F.S.R., the Union of Romanian Sports Federations] in 1930, with George Alexandru Plagino serving as the first president. 49
The Romanian state incorporated legislative, administrative, political, and even sports-related measures to centralize and homogenize these characteristics as part of the nation-building process and state formation. 50 Historian Irina Livezeanu discussed the complex situation Greater Romania faced, explaining that ‘before 1918, Romanians did not constitute the urban elites of Bessarabia, Bukovina, and Transylvania’. 51 For political elites, ‘an even more pressing goal was to replace minorities in elite positions with ethnic Romanians’. 52 Similarly, Svetlana Suveica affirmed that after the Old Kingdom of Romania's union with Bessarabia, ‘the Romanian administration indicated that one of the main measures of Romanianization in the new province would be the reorganization of regional and local administrative institutions and the use of Romanian as the language of administration’. 53
In July 1920, the F.S.S.R. arranged the first athletic match, covering associations from Bucharest, Transylvania, Banat, Bukovina, and Bessarabia. 54 Furthermore, the A.C.R.R. created branches in the newly incorporated regions. The motor-racing tracks organized and sponsored by the club spanned cities from Transylvania, Bukovina, and Bessarabia, bridging the gap between the capital city of Bucharest and these provinces. 55 Automobile drivers, both men and women, made stops at designated points in the country's new and old regions along their route.
Nevertheless, this period included changes in social dynamics, with other social groups becoming curious about playing or observing different sports: ‘Interwar Romanian sport was at first a cultural import of the elite, then spread to all sections of society’. 56 New sports clubs emerged of which women could become members, such as Yacht Clubul Regal Român [Y.C.R.R., the Romanian Royal Yacht Club], created in 1921 and reorganized in 1934. 57 Horse riding, automobile races, and aviation events were accessible to the upper and elite middle classes. After World War I, various sports designed for men emerged, such as boxing, football, and rugby. However, ice hockey and skijoring also appeared, in which women began to compete. Despite economic difficulties resulting from the global economic crisis (1929–1933), new federations of boxing, tennis, football, basketball, volleyball, swimming, and chess developed quickly and spread among the Romanian population. 58 Romania competed (e.g. in football, ice hockey, and skiing) in neighbouring countries such as Poland, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, and Hungary. 59 The remarkable achievements of the country's athletes enhanced its international recognition. Romania was invited to participate in sporting events held in Italy, Austria, and Hungary. 60
Moreover, the field of physical culture was marked by conceptions of the different social roles of women and men in a society where traditional forms dominated over modern ones […]. In sports life, the presence of women in the stadiums and arenas was seen as a sign of ‘civilization’, of progress according to the Western model. Unlike men, few women dared to pursue a sports career, although success ensured them special respect in society.
61
The sports press and stadiums were key elements that linked consumers (spectators) and various sports. Sports became a potential career for young people from elite and lower-middle classes who wanted to climb the social hierarchy. 62
To foster a more inclusive society and support the nation-building and state formation processes, the Romanian royal family contributed significantly by awarding prizes and decorations, donating to sports champions in various events, and participating in competitions. Princess Ileana, Prince Carol, and Prince Nicolae participated in sports competitions, such as motor racing, bobsleigh, and sledding, or were honorary presidents of sports clubs. In April 1928, Prince Nicolae was elected vice president of the F.S.S.R. 63 He participated in numerous national and international competitions. Driving an Alfa Romeo, he finished in seventh place in Italy's 1935 international Targa Abruzzo motor race, demonstrating his skills as a racing driver. 64 King Carol II reigned from 1930 to 1940. He was a sportsman and a fervent advocate of sports. However, politically, he introduced an authoritarian regime in Romania in 1938. 65 Members of European royal families were associated with sports clubs, held formal positions, and played sports. The connection between the public and the monarchy was limited to official ceremonies and occasional appearances. However, professionally, ‘today it is not surprising to see the King of Sweden playing tennis in Monaco or Monte Carlo, or to watch His Majesty King Carol II attending a football match’. 66 King George VI (1895–1952) of the United Kingdom was recognized for excelling in golf, tennis, and horse riding. 67
The problem with developing sports in Romania before and after World War I was the state's inability to fully support modern facilities and offer athletes the required equipment. Unlike other states, such as England and France, which had developed economies, Romanian sports associations played a greater role in organizing and financing sports competitions and offering prizes (e.g. trophies and awards, cash payments). The sponsors included daily papers (Universul and Dimineața [Morning]), the renowned sports newspaper Gazeta Sporturilor, and the magazine Realitatea Ilustrată, which collaborated with the F.S.S.R. 68 The state was criticized for allocating only modest amounts of money to the Romanian sports movement. This criticism intensified in 1933, when the budget allotted no support for sports. 69 While modern sports were practised later in Romania than in other European states with older sports traditions, Romanian athletes achieved excellent results internationally, including in football, motorsports, and bobsleigh. 70 However, the development of indoor swimming pools and covered tennis courts was neglected, limiting athletes’ training throughout the winter.
The state again faced criticism in 1937 for insufficient funding. 71 The U.F.S.R. celebrated its 25th anniversary in 1937. This institution's establishment coincided with the birth of the modern Romanian sports movement. The Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques [Union of French Athletic Sports Societies] served as the federation's model. Sports development evolved in Romania such that in 1912 there were four associations with 150 members. By 1937, this number had increased to 800 associations and 160,000 members. 72
Women's Participation in Professional Summer and Winter Sports
Women's access to higher and broader levels of society through sports and the extent of their participation in international competitions require further exploration. Players attended matches primarily organized in Bucharest, Sinaia, Braşov, Cluj, Timișoara, and Constanța. Matches (e.g. tennis, automobile racing, bobsleigh, sledding, ice skating, ice hockey, and skiing) were held individually for men, women, and mixed pairs. The evolution of sporting competitions in the interwar period increased the number of female players in national matches and opened access to international competitions.
Romania primarily participated in international competitions with men; however, women also competed in sports, such as ice-skating, and in tough sports, such as auto racing and aviation. Romania first entered the Olympic Games in 1900 but did not officially send teams until 1924, and it returned in 1936 with 71 athletes, including two women. 73 This episode underlined a disparity in participation and access for women in sports, at least at the international level.
Internationally, a strong advocate of women's sports was French sportswoman Alice Milliat (1884–1957), who founded the Fédération Sportive Féminine Internationale (FSFI) [International Women’s Sports Federation] in October 1921. The following year, the first Women's World Games were held. 74
Women's participation and access increased in professional national summer competitions (e.g. tennis, horse racing, and motorsports) and winter competitions (e.g. sledding, ice-skating, and bobsleigh) in the interwar period. Women from the middle and lower classes became interested in joining sports competitions. Most players were members of sports associations affiliated with the F.S.S.R. (U.F.S.R.). Each player had to finalize their registration fees for each competition. Even though the country modernized, and urban areas further developed, many young Romanian athletes came from rural areas during the interwar period. They eventually played national sporting matches and attained excellent results. 75 Like other sports, national equestrian contests were reinstated after 1920. The state's financial resources were minimal; therefore, sports clubs played a significant role in this movement. Women also participated and monetary prizes were awarded. 76
The T.C.R.R. arranged matches for both sexes. Tennis club members Julie Ghica and Florica Ștefănescu played alongside men, achieving excellent results and receiving cash prizes. 77 The press portrayed national tennis champion Florica Ștefănescu as an ‘excellent player’. 78 Moreover, Lenke Ziszovits-Popper, from a Jewish background, was recognized for her tennis performances at the national and international levels. 79
The A.C.R.R. restarted its automobile circuits (track routes) in 1922, covering the entire country and incorporating Transylvania and Bukovina, although, poor infrastructure impeded the growth of sports tourism. However, the club continued to provide crucial support through donations and financial contributions for building the road network. 80 The association set regulations for motor-racing competitions. 81 Automobile racing allowed women to compete and enter a male-dominated world. Because of the motor races, foreigners and Romanians saw the country's picturesque surroundings and charming places, improving its image abroad. Participants required a driving licence to participate and had to register with the club secretariat. 82 The club’s most important contest was undoubtedly ‘Marele Premiu de Turism al A.C.R.R’ [The Grand Prize of Tourism of A.C.R.R.]. In 1924, Irina Vulturescu became the first female driver to compete alongside male participants in the A.C.R.R.'s third annual contest, and ‘everyone in the local community, but especially those in the competition – who now realize best what such a performance from a woman means – burst into cheers, and an enthusiasm of admiration swept over everyone’. 83 Irina Vulturescu was received with astonishment. However, the press portrayed her as ‘a young woman, still too young for such a test, no matter how sporty she was’. 84 This episode illustrated how a woman's physical abilities and driving skills were perceived as inferior when competing on equal terms with men in an automobile race. However, international spectators were more open-minded and responded positively to the event, leading to the introduction of the ‘Ladies’ Cup’ trophy, accompanied by a cash prize, designed to encourage greater participation among women. 85 Irina Vulturescu was a fervent motorsport participant who inspired other women to compete in motor racing. 86
Furthermore, in the sixth annual automobile competition of the A.C.R.R., female participation was evident, with five potential competitors. However, only three remained in the competition: Elena G. Gane, Aga Gărdescu, and Colette Blank, as illustrated in an article from Universul: These female racing drivers were simply admirable, proving a skill, a dexterity, a courage, and an energy that even experienced male racing drivers do not possess. In general, the results of the ladies were better than those of their male competitors in different tracks, and they all drove with calm and cool blood.
Colette Blank was described as ‘an established and skilled female racing driver […] she has achieved admirable results throughout the circuit’. Aga Gărdescu suffered numerous automobile breakdowns, but with courage and will, managed to repair the automobile ‘like a real man’, thereby demonstrating that women could also handle more technical, car-related matters. 87 However, the sportswoman Elena G. Gane ‘was the revelation of this year's race’. Gane was ‘driving with admirable courage and “brio”, still knew how to be cautious and calculated, and thus ended up among the three unpenalized competitors of the competition. An admirable result for which she deserves all the congratulations’. 88 In 1927, Elena G. Gane won the ‘Ladies’ Cup’ trophy. The 8th annual automobile competition, organized by the A.C.R.R. with support from the Automobile Club of Yugoslavia, from the neighbouring country, was an important event held in Belgrade. Barbu Poenaru, a male athlete, secured the Grand Prize of the A.C.R.R. Meanwhile, Elena G. Gane secured the second prize and the ‘Ladies Cup’, marking an accomplishment on an international level. 89
In the coastal car race from Sinaia, one of the six contestants was a woman, Coletta Polizu-Micșunești (1901–1972). She was a striking example of determination in auto-racing matches and the fight for women's empowerment in society through sport. At the 7th annual automobile contest held by the A.C.R.R., Coletta Polizu-Micșunești was one of the winners, receiving the fourth prize, one of five prizes traditionally awarded exclusively to men. Additionally, she won the ‘Ladies Cup’ along with a cash prize. 90 In an article from Gazeta Sporturilor, she was described in a commendatory manner: ‘Ms. Colette Polizu-Micșunești's ascent was at its peak. The excellent driver completed the 2500 km race on time and in optimal conditions’. Prince Nicolae secured second place in the rankings due to his outstanding sports skills. 91 Coletta Polizu-Micșunești was also a fan of aviation. However, in May 1930, she suffered an air accident, which caused adverse reactions among the public regarding how dangerous some sports were for women. 92 Drivers such as Irina Vulturescu, Elena G. Gane, Coletta Polizu-Micșunești, and others acquired outstanding sports results during the interwar years, a period seen as ‘the golden age of motoring’. 93 They attained appreciation and social status, leading to press articles about their sporting achievements in automobile racing (e.g. Automobil & Sport, Universul and Dimineața). However, women still faced challenges when competing in male-dominated sports, particularly related to their physicality. Male participants and the press viewed female competitors as ‘sporty individuals’, but they considered auto racing or aviation too demanding for women.
Elena Caragiani-Stoenescu (1887–1929) was the first Romanian female aviator to obtain a pilot brevet, which she obtained in Paris in 1914. She took lessons in Romania at the L.N.A. but was not allowed to take the exam to become a pilot. 94 She was a leading advocate for women's emancipation through organized sports before World War I, especially in fields such as horse riding and aviation, in which examples were rare. 95 Female aviators, such as Elena Caragiani-Stoenescu before the war, along with Ioana Cantacuzino, Smaranda Brăescu, and others during the interwar years, became outstanding representatives, achieving exceptional results and national and international recognition. 96
Ioana Cantacuzino (1895–1951) was the first Romanian aviator to acquire her pilot certificate in the country in 1930, highlighting how Romanian society advanced in the interwar years regarding gender equity. In addition to her accomplishments as an aviator, she assumed leadership of the ‘Mircea Cantacuzino’ (established in 1928) association after her brother's death. This organization provided aviation courses, and as an aviation school emerged as a product of the private initiative customary in that era, supported by upper-class families, donations, and state aid (which was never sufficient). The association had a hangar and a fleet of airplanes. 97
Princess Marina Ştirbey (1912–2001), born in Vienna, was a famous internationally appreciated aviator. Her portrait, depicted in 1935 in the motor press, was quite captivating: Miss Știrbey was a revelation […] very well prepared […] and she triumphed. There will be many who will not be late to attribute Ms. Știrbey's victory to luck. We will dismiss them with anticipation for the simple reason that the triumph […] was prepared with patience, tenacity, and perseverance, especially perseverance.
98
This example marked the changes in society in the 1930s, particularly in the acceptance of women as competitors with men in various sports, especially in those that required physical strength. Princess Marina Ştirbey participated in international aviation competitions and became well known, helping to improve Romania's image abroad. Marina Ştirbey participated in a European air flight competition and ‘traveled over 5000 km in less than 33 hours on board a plane with minimal possibilities’. 99 She was described as an audacious and fearless pilot. 100 Together with Ioana Cantacuzino, they were women committed to aviation. 101
In contrast, Smaranda Brăescu (1897–1948), a rare case in Romania, was a skydiver and aviator from a modest family who studied parachuting in Germany and achieved excellent results. In a press article, she explained how she embarked on a scholarly journey to Germany to pursue her professional career because she had fewer opportunities and was not allowed to operate a plane in Romania. She experienced German society as more inclusive, with more possibilities in aviation and an attainable path to becoming a female skydiver. 102 She was presented in the Romanian press as a source of national pride: ‘She preserves in her voice, as in her whole appearance, a charming shyness and modesty, in striking contrast to the boldness and courage she displays in those dangerous parachute descents’. 103
Smaranda Brăescu provided an example for women to engage in sports, including aviation, which had previously seemed unattainable. An American sportswoman previously set the world record for a parachute jump at 4800 meters, while Smaranda Brăescu achieved a jump of over 6000 meters. 104 Later, she successfully obtained her pilot's licence in the United States. An article from Dimineața recalled the difficulties of a women's sports champion. Smaranda Brăescu received ‘decorations, receptions, awards, and praise that reward her. Women's associations take pride in her achievements. Smaranda Brăescu's name had gained recognition beyond borders’. Despite this, ‘she wants to go to America to break her own record. However, the enthusiasm has waned. And Smaranda Brăescu is poor. She only has courage and perseverance’. 105 Smaranda Brăescu raised the necessary funds and arrived in America, where she set a new women's world record by parachuting from an altitude of 7000 m. Unfortunately, at home, the authorities denied her request for access to a training plane due to a lack of funds. 106 Aviation was costly, and Smaranda Brăescu was constantly fighting for financial support. 107 This barrier indicated a lack of interest on the part of Romanian authorities in supporting her career, which was particularly surprising given her proven skills as a skydiver and aviator, as demonstrated by her national performances and international achievements, as a European and world champion.
An article from Ilustrațiunea Română in 1936 noted Romanian women's achievements in aviation within a predominantly patriarchal society: We live in the middle of the century of aviation […] However, in the same century, the liberation from the guardianship of prejudices of the woman who wants and can work also took place […] Among these ‘inaccessible’ lands, it seemed that aviation was also placed, which requires strength, courage, initiative, and cold blood […] this prejudice also fell suddenly. It was first overthrown by a few brave women from abroad.
108
In Romanian society, sport gradually became an instrument of emancipation for women, even in aviation, which was considered a perilous sport. Gradually, certain perceptions or prejudices began to fade.
In Romania during the interwar period, a few courageous women embraced aviation as a profession: [W]e must remember that ‘girl of the air’, Smaranda Brăescu, who first had to face all the hardships of the profession, fighting with the irony of distrustful men, with the cumbersome and bureaucratic officialdom, and even with the ill-will of many […] And yet she broke down all resistance to write in the pages of our aviation the first world record for parachute jumping […] A forerunner and head of a school is then Mrs. Ioana Cantacuzino, an excellent pilot, who is preparing new aviators, the surprises of tomorrow.
109
Furthermore, another example of a sportswoman is depicted: The aviation meetings then revealed an excellent acrobatic pilot in the person of Miss Marina Ştirbey. This young woman […] with a virile profile and hands that are both graceful and energetic, attracted the attention of the public and the press, performing the most difficult tours of strength, with the calmness and suppleness of an old wolf of the air […] Apart from these established names, a plethora of young women have now also left the study phase and are energetically passing the test of fire.
110
The article revealed female athletes as delicate and graceful. However, they could also show strength, determination, and courage, qualities not solely attributed to men. Therefore, ‘women can and did outcompete men in sport and beyond’, as Bekker and Mumford argued in their book. 111
Despite the barriers limiting women's access to careers in sports, joining sports clubs legitimized them to assert themselves publicly. The Y.C.R.R. allowed women to join the association as members. 112 Men and women competed in nautical matches in Constanța and the capital city, Bucharest, involving rowing clubs and sports clubs from the country, including those from Arad and Timișoara, cities from the newly incorporated regions of Transylvania and Bukovina.
Winter games were organized primarily in Sinaia and Brașov. More women got involved in bobsleigh, sledding, ice-skating, and ice-hockey, as these sports expanded both in the former Old Kingdom of Romania and the newly installed historical provinces of the state. In 1922, Cercul Atletic București [C.A.B., the Bucharest Athletic Circle] organized the first authorized national ice-skating competition in the capital. Simultaneously, the sports club developed ice hockey. Women competed alongside men in an ice-skating competition entitled ‘Figures, Speed, and Distance’. 113 Ice hockey was introduced in Romania in 1923–1924; its precursor was ice-skating organized in Cișmigiu Park, Bucharest. Ice hockey originated in Canada and was introduced to Europe c. 1900, in Chamonix, France. Bucharest, the capital of Romania, and Brașov and Sibiu in Transylvania held the national ice hockey championships. 114
An article in Universul noted that in Romania only a few women participated in so-called ‘luxury sports’ such as motor racing, horse riding, tennis, and golf. Most women remained outside of practising sports. However, this phenomenon changed when the first women's athletics championships were organized in Brașov in 1927, marking an important juncture in the sports movement and allowing more women to access sports. The author of the article, Neagu Boerescu (1889–1946), an athlete and supporter of the sports movement, argued that this phenomenon emerged earlier abroad, with more women engaging in sports. He stated that: The difference between what we might call ‘luxury’ sports and the practice of female athletics is that the former largely provides healthy entertainment for an elite of young women with great material means, while the practice of light athletics calls the great mass of a country's female population to sport.
He further asserted that ‘[a] methodically conducted training can bring a woman into an athletic form that approaches, or even equals, that of a man’. 115 Over 50 athletes from various Transylvanian cities and 12 students from the National Institute of Physical Education in Bucharest participated in the aforementioned athletics championship. Women were required to enroll in the National Institute of Physical Education in Bucharest courses. 116
Bucharest saw its first women's ice hockey match in 1934, where Maura Roveanu displayed gratifying skills. 117 The figure skater, Irina Timcic also gained domestic recognition. With her partner, Alfred Eisenbeisser (of German ethnicity), she also participated in international ice-skating competitions; for female athletes, access to competitions outside the country was limited. 118 Maura Roveanu, Irina Timcic, Romica Popp (from Brașov), and Trude Guber from the Cernăuți region of Bukovina, which has an important Jewish population, were recognized for their performances on ice. 119
Bobsleigh remained a favourite winter sport for upper- and elite-middle-class women. As a press article noted, female athletes supported the creation of Cercul de amatori de Bobsleigh din România [C.A.B.R., the Romanian Bobsleigh Amateur Circle]. This association was established as a result of the numerous donations received. Renowned athletes Colette Blank, Dina Petrescu, and Mia Steriade were among the donors, revealing their financial autonomy. 120 The affinity between women and bobsleigh was undoubtedly also illustrated during the winter sports events in Sinaia in January 1926: ‘Women's sport has many followers for bobsleigh – although it is a tough sport’. Mia Mateescu made a ‘beautiful debut’ in bobsleigh and was seen as a serious competitor, much as she was in sledding and skiing. In the ‘Ladies’ Singles Cup’, Mia Mateescu won with a record time of 5 minutes and 52 seconds, surpassing the previous record of 6 minutes and 11 seconds held by 14 male athletes. 121 In the bobsleigh races, Dina Petrescu, together with male teammates, ‘set a record time’ and won the ‘Social Worker's Cup’. Coletta Blank, teamed with two men, won the ‘A. Sturdza Cup’. Regarding the sledding competitions, the ladies solo contest titled the ‘Neagu Boerescu Cup’, was won by Mia Matescu. 122
In addition to the longstanding women champions, Universul saw Mia Steriade as a valuable team member in sledding. 123 These examples demonstrate how women could excel in demanding sports such as bobsleigh, although the press often portrayed this sport as particularly challenging for them. Moreover, the women's sledding championship appeared to be recognized nationally in the sports community. 124 The ‘Sledding Cup for Ladies’, sponsored by Realitatea Ilustrată, featured a field of 12 competitors in January 1931, from which Mia Mateescu emerged as the champion. She was represented as ‘an accomplished sportswoman, [who] won the cup, and took the magazine's golden plate’. 125 This served as another example of women's representation in the media and provided a means for sportswomen to be promoted and recognized in public life through their athletic successes.
In the 1920s, skiing became famous in the Romanian sports community. This sport was practised much earlier in Denmark and Finland. 126 The national bobsleigh and skiing championships for women were approved in Sinaia. 127 Skijoring was a new sport at the time, comprising a 10–12 km race tournament for both men and women. Moreover, women and men competed on frozen lakes and rivers during national ice yachting (or ice sailing) competitions. For instance, women competed on Lake Siutghiul in Constanța County. Ice boats were required for this sport, both recreationally and competitively. 128
Despite the numerous obstacles women faced, the examples mentioned above illustrate their participation and achievements in both national and international sports competitions – a notable development for Romania in terms of gender and sports development following World War I. Some women encountered greater challenges than others, but their shared activity was sports competitions and the connections they built through sport.
Conclusion
Women participated in interwar Romanian sporting events for recreation and socialization, as well as for health and sporting performance. Compared to previous periods, in the interwar years, joining sports clubs or engaging in national sports competitions, and occasionally, competing internationally, enabled women to gain visibility, recognition, and, for some, a career. In daily papers, sports newspapers, and magazines, women's professional performances received attention, including in tennis, aviation, auto racing, bobsleigh, sledding, ice-skating, and skiing. Of course, more articles focused on male athletes’ participation and achievements than on female successes. Nevertheless, sports constituted a helpful tool for women of various social classes and regions during the interwar period. The country's modernization process and the Old Kingdom of Romania's unification with the provinces of Bessarabia, Transylvania, Bukovina, and Banat in 1918 also played a role in this process.
During the interwar period, sports had a richer evolution in society compared to before World War I, as the number of players and spectators increased. In Romanian society, a few sports were still seen as too demanding for women, in fields such as aviation, motorsports, and bobsleigh, where female athletes were often portrayed as having assumed traits typically considered masculine, such as boldness and strength. Bureaucratic obstacles, inadequate state funding, and male misconceptions persisted regarding women's efforts in obtaining a pilot's or a driving license, as well as accessing sports equipment. Despite bureaucratic and financial obstacles, an increasing number of women participated in sports and joined clubs to pursue careers and broaden their roles in public life, thereby achieving autonomy and social status.
In conclusion, the women athletes analyzed, some of whom are not well-known to either the Romanian public or international audiences, viewed sports as a means of empowerment. Their stories, which are helpful for current gender analyses, illustrate their motivations, participation, and accomplishments in national and international sports competitions, as well as the barriers, inequalities, and exclusions they faced.
Footnotes
Acknowledgements
I appreciate the support of the editors and anonymous reviewers during the revision process, and their valuable feedback and insights, which significantly improved the article.
