A report from a 5-year national survey conducted in France reveals that the incidence of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) related to sporting activities is 30-times lower in women than in men. The sports principally associated with SCA in women were jogging, cycling, and swimming, with moderate-to-vigorous effort. Among 820 individuals who experienced an SCA, only 5.2% were female. The overall incidence of SCA per million female sports participants aged 15–75 years was estimated to be 0.59–2.17 per year. In addition, women were significantly more likely that men to be successfully resuscitated and alive at hospital admission than men (46.6% vs 30.0%, P = 0.02). Neurological outcome and survival to hospital discharge were similar between the sexes.