page_title: Women in WWE
section_title: Ruthless Aggression Era (2002–2008)
hierarchical_section_title: Women in WWE / Women in WWE / Ruthless Aggression Era (2002–2008)
caption_attribution_description: Trish's last match
context_page_description: Throughout its history, women have served in various onscreen roles in the American professional wrestling promotion WWE. In the 1990s, WWE introduced the term Diva to refer to its female performers. The term was applied to women who appear as wrestlers, managers or valets, backstage interviewers, or ring announcers. The term was discontinued at WrestleMania 32 on April 3, 2016 when the new Women's Championship was introduced. WWE currently refers to their female talent as Women Superstars or simply Superstars.
context_section_description: Much of the year of 2002 centered around Trish Stratus and her feuds with Jazz, Molly Holly, and a re-debuting Victoria including over the Women’s Championship. In April 2002 while filming a small acting role for Dark Angel, Lita suffered a neck injury and was the first female talent to have neck fusion surgery. She was out of action for almost a year and a half. As she rehabilitated, she kept herself visible by co-hosting Sunday Night Heat on MTV.
  Since May 5, 2002, the women’s division would see an expansion including a departure and a return of a former talent when the WWF officially changed its name to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as the company first began to hire more female talents than ever before, including female winners of the reality television show Tough Enough, which featured contestants aspiring to be professional wrestlers (Nidia in 2001, Linda Miles and Jackie Gayda in 2002). Debra departed the company in the month of June along with her then-husband Stone Cold Steve Austin. Sable returned to WWE on the April 3, 2003 episode of SmackDown! for the first time since controversially departing from the company in late 1999; her first storyline returning to company for several months was with new Playboy covergirl Torrie Wilson. The WWE women's division would see itself competing in more match-ups previously contested only by men (including for the Women's Championship), such as street fights and hardcore matches. Numerous Divas competed in contests ranging from "Pillow Fights" and "Bra and Panties" match-ups to "Bikini Contests", which were based more on the sexual appeal of the women involved.
  In June, Gail Kim became the first woman with a Korean background to win the Women's Championship. Victoria and Lita competed in the first Women's steel cage match towards the end of the year on November 24.
  WWE eventually re-introduced the Diva Search, in which Christy Hemme became the inaugural winner. In December 2004, Lita and Trish Stratus main evented Raw for the Women's Championship, making it the 2nd time in history for female talents to main event one of WWE's main shows. Moreover, Lita became the only female talent to main event Raw on three occasions including winning the Women's Championship.
  Since mid-2004 and through various periods over the years until the year of 2011, most of the original female roster departed from the company in groups first initially with Terri Runnels, Jacqueline, Sable, Gail Kim, Nidia, Jazz, and Linda Miles all departed from the company mutually or due to budget cuts followed by the spring to summer of the year of 2005 where Molly Holly, Dawn Marie, Jackie Gayda, and Ivory also left the company. The departures officially left Trish Stratus, Lita, Victoria, Torrie Wilson, Stacy Keibler, and Lilian Garcia as the remaining original female talent who would continue on in the company. Eventually, Sharmell, Jazz, and Gail Kim would return to the company in either short-lived or long-term second tenures. The most notable departures came in the year of 2006 from the middle of the year until the end of the year starting first when Stacy Keibler departed the company due to transitioning into an acting career followed by at the end of the year as Trish Stratus retired at Unforgiven and Lita retired at Survivor Series. The departures finally left Victoria, Torrie Wilson, Jazz, Sharmell, Gail Kim, and Lilian Garcia as the remaining final group of original female talents continuing on with the company until most the final group departed one by one leaving Lilian Garcia as the only remaining original female talent left in the company until her departure in spring of 2016.
  Although most if not all original female talent left WWE, Trish Stratus, Lita, Sunny, Molly Holly, Victoria, Torrie Wilson, Jackie Gayda, Stacy Keibler, Lilian Garcia, Terri Runnels, Jacqueline, Ivory, and Alundra Blayze would make special appearances or appear in special guest roles with the company in later years. New era talent, Michelle McCool, Candice Michelle, Melina, Vickie Guerrero, Kelly Kelly, Eve Torres, and 
caption: Trish Stratus celebrating her victory as a 7-time WWE Women's Champion in her final match
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