Within the larger historiographical context, the history of Algerian women in post-colonial Algeria has received little attention. Even fewer studies have looked at women’s sport. During the Boumedienne era in Algeria – and despite the official discourse that it was time for women to be liberated -the state’s position towards women was considerably conservative. Yet, if social conservatism prevailed, it is also during that period that the state promoted, and made compulsory women’s sport in the state school system, as well as promoting female participation in sports at the competition level. My paper seeks to explore the role of the state in promoting and governing women’s sport. It aims to show the ways in which the promotion of female sport has been linked, on the one hand, to the nation-building process and was an integral part of the Socialist ideology promoted by the regime, and, on the other hand, to the changing position and status of women in post-colonial Algeria. Finally, through media analysis, my paper will seek to explore and analyze popular reaction in Algiers to the promotion and development of women’s sport.