More than 478,000 girls participated in track and field during the 2014–15 school year.
Outdoor track and field ranked highest for girls participation, totaling 478,726 athletes. The sport beat out volleyball (432,176) and basketball (429,504).
Both genders combined, track and field was the second most popular sport behind football, notching a total of 1,057,358 athletes.
Overall participation showed slight growth over the previous school year—more than 7.8 million high school students got involved in sports.
“Despite other out-of-school opportunities that exist in some sports, this year’s survey is yet another confirmation that our model of education-based sports within the high school setting is the number one choice for boys and girls nationwide,” Bob Gardner, the executive director at NFHS, said in a press release.
From: http://www.runnersworld.com/briefs/track-and-field-is-top-sport-among-female-high-school-athletes
