All The Female Sportstars Being Immortalised by Barbie

via Mattel

A load of female sports stars are being immortalised by Barbie – and that’s just great news.

Toy giant Mattel has said that they wanted to create dolls of some of the world’s biggest sports women in a bid to encourage the next generation of girls to stick with sports and stay active.

The new Barbies include global superstars like tennis legend Venus Williams, gymnasts Rebeca Andrade and Alexa Moreno, footballers Mary Fowler and Christine Sinclair, boxer Estelle Mossely, paratriathlete Susana Rodriguez, swimmer Federica Pellegrini, and track and field sprinter Ewa Swoboda.

“Sport has been important to me in terms of creating my sense of self,” Fowler said. “I think it has definitely shaped me into the person I am today.

“If I look back on my journey and I think about the moments when I really felt like I took a step forward in my growth as a person, they’ve all been from moments where I was challenged as an athlete. The advice I like to give to aspiring athletes is to not be afraid of making mistakes.”

via Mattel

Fowler’s Barbie comes with her signature gloves and boots, as well as a football too.

Mattel said they wanted to celebrate “the impact of sports in fostering self-confidence, ambition, and empowerment among the next generation” with the new collection.

Four time Olympic gold winner Williams, whose Barbie comes complete with tennis racket, tennis whites, and a visor, said she had “always been driven by the idea of shattering glass ceilings and staying true to myself.”

She added that she believes Barbie agrees “deeply with that ethos”.

This comes after Barbie announced their first ever doll with Down Syndrome, a significant move the brand as it moves to further diversify its doll collection to represent all girls.

Now, if we could get a doll immortalising our very own Ellen Keane that would be something!

• Barbie
• sport