“At Barbie we believe girls can be and do anything.”

Those were the words of Krista Berger, Senior Vice President of Barbie at Mattel. On October 6, 2025, Mattel launched a new series of Barbie dolls— Team Barbie—made up of a number of international Olympians and Rugby players.

These powerful heroes are making a difference to young girls who have their own dreams of sports achievement. And they are impactful.

Certainly, other recent Barbie series have also served as compelling role models. I have two “Army Barbie” dolls and there is also a popular police officer series.

But the new series is more than a set of dolls for collectors. These are role models—specifically designed to play a role in building confidence, encouraging leadership and sparking lifelong ambition.

The timing couldn’t be more perfect.

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On February 6th, the Winter Olympics will kick off and then the following weeks will be devoted to the dreams, determination, and ultimate desires of the athletes who earned their right to compete—in individual and team sports.

Every one of them has a story—of how hard they had to work, practice, train improve and fiercely fight to achieve their goal. They are all role icons in their own right.

Mattel did their research in support of Team Barbie. They found that one in three girls disengages from sports by the age of fourteen due not only to issues of confidence and self-doubt but also because of social pressures and a lack of role models.

If you can see it, you can become it. The Olympic athletes will prove that to be true. So will the new line of dolls belonging to Team Barbie.

And my next book will take that a step further and highlight even more incredible athletes who were role models, and trailblazers in their own right.

There will definitely be a number of “Firsts:” from Gretchen Fraser, the first American to win Olympic gold in downhill skiing, to Tenley Albright, first in Olympic figure skating, to the incredible, multi-talented Babe Zaharais, who tried to compete not only in one Olympic track in field event, but all of them.

The rules kept her from her dream.

As for team sports, that evolution is a story all its own. From hockey to soccer, basketball and even football, the interest in and support for women’s team sports is growing at an explosive rate.

Why did it take so long? There were a number of factors that kept many early women athletes from achieving their goals, from the AAU rules about amateur status, and the fact that beyond college, there often weren’t ways or means for women to continue to play or compete. Title IX changed that. 

So, get ready and mark your calendar. My next book will be released on June 16th.  The Girls Who Beat the Odds is already debuting on Amazon. Get ready now to meet these girls – who fought hard, set records, won and lost, and inspired generations. 

They’re waiting to meet you!

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