Yes, I’m a hockey fan. Yes, I’m a woman.

I have always disliked the fact that I need to defend myself when I tell people I am a hockey fan. I need to provide a timeline of my interest in the team, I need to be able to spew meaningless statistics on command, and I need to be able to know more than the person questioning me. Of course I can do these things because of the time I’ve had to prepare and of course my interest in such things, but I shouldn’t need to. No one should need to defend his or her interests and passions.

 I’ve been a Chicago Blackhawks fan for six wonderful years. My love affair with the team began when my dad took me on a trip to the windy city and I first had a chance to see them play. I knew relatively nothing about the game at this point – only what I had seen growing up with my two brothers who played hockey throughout their entire childhood. Once I was introduced to the sport on my own, it was love at first sight. The sounds, the beautiful red jerseys, the atmosphere in area… I was hooked.

After the trip, I began watching games religiously. I saved money for jerseys of my favourite players. I enjoyed looking up and memorizing statistics and the team’s valuable history. It only got better and better for me, as the team I fell in love with started winning, and winning a lot. In the past six years, the Chicago Blackhawks have won the Stanley Cup three times (2010, 2013, 2015). I have watched every single game and have given them so much of my time and devotion.  It is disheartening that in return, when, in an attempt to befriend other fans, my loyalty and sincerity is questioned with brutal force. This could be because of the increasing amount of people becoming fans of the Blackhawks because of their winning track record, a trend called ‘bandwagon jumping’. I’ve always been offended when people used the term in regards to me – it didn’t make any sense to me. The Blackhawks are what made me like the sport and I have been a loyal fan since the beginning (my beginning).

My dad and brothers used to tell me to not listen to doubters and the people at school who would laugh when I wore my jerseys, they told me “Oh, it doesn’t matter, we know you’re a real fan”. It still hurt my feelings. I never once saw people go up to a boy in school and ask him to “name 10 players on the team” of the jersey he was wearing, so why did I have to? I sure as hell could, but I didn’t delight from that. It was just a waste of time.

I want things to change. Sports are for everyone. Girls can be fans of male dominated sports.

I love the Chicago Blackhawks, don’t ask me to prove it – because I can and it will just end up making you look bad.