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For the longest time, women's and men's sporting abilities have been compared against one another, whether it be through thinking men are stronger and their bodies are built and made for the said sport, or that women are much more capable of competing in expressive sports to a high standard. These views further develop the old belief that men are the breadwinners in society because they are masculine and strong and that women are simple and only good at delicate activities (housewives). Sexism in sports starts from the fact most men are paid more, and the airtime women receive is far less than men.
Women wanting to compete with men should be a decision that women make collectively and fairly. The choice should not be taken away from them and forcing them into sex classes that simply may be too easy for them. An example of this would be Lindsey Vonn - an American who has won the World Cup four times and in November 2012, she requested to be allowed to compete against men but her application was denied. (Verry, 2018) If Lindsey Vonn believes that she can outperform a male, she should be allowed to prove herself. If you are the very best in the women's league you will have nothing to strive towards as there is no real threat, and their performance will plateau. If Lindsey could compete against men, she would have something to work towards and strive towards something.
Women can and should compete against men as there are cases of women outperforming males in sports that are said to be 'manly' or 'male-dominated'. An example of this would be Danica Patrick - a NASCAR driver - who won the 2008 Indy Japan and finished 3rd place in the 2009 Indy 500. There is even more to support that women can compete against men. (History, 2020) Another example is Seana Hogan who retains numerous records in Ultra Cycling, which has not been beaten by any man or woman to this day. (Stuart, 2019) These strong women show us how women can improve competition substantially. These cases show that on a bigger scale than just sport the best person regardless of their sex should win. Regardless of their sex, this should not be the contributing factor in determining whether a person can compete in any given sport. The overarching quality that should desired surely should be the passion and talent of the sport that they compete in.
It has been reported that 65% of women have suffered sexism in their sport, but only 10% have reported it. (Grey, 2020) This is a real problem and an issue that should not be overlooked as it is something that needs to be challenged by society. There are different levels of sexism, from women playing fewer sets in tennis to women's bouts in boxing being shorter or to the extreme fact that coaches, male competitors, and the news treat women differently and inappropriately by making degrading comments. Serena Williams is a prime example, as in May, she competed in the French Open, her first Grand slam since having a baby, wearing a 'Black Panther' style catsuit. She explained to people that she wore this outfit due to health concerns about blood clots as she suffered from these since she gave birth to her baby and in August, The French Tennis Federation, said that Serna Williams would be banned from wearing her catsuit again and declared a stricter dress code. Bernard Guidicelli (2021) released a statement saying 'I believe we have sometimes gone too far. Serena's outfits this year, for example, would no longer be accepted. You have to respect the game and the place.' This is so morally wrong that a woman cannot wear a sports outfit as it does not 'respect' the sport. What someone wears does not affect their performance and if it affects other athletes' performance that is something that they should be held accountable for not Serena.
A way in which sexism would be challenged is by getting young girls involved in sporting activities and sticking to it to combat the stigma around doing a sport that is said to be too 'boyish'. We also need to see a change in how much we see women coaches, we need young girls and boys to understand that women and men are fully capable of producing the same level of ability. Having women as qualified coaches teaches boys that women are not simple-minded and can do great things. It also gives young girls role models to look towards. Sadly, this is not being done as women only make up 18% of qualified and only 9% are senior coaches. (Women in Sport, 2021) Further supporting the fact sexism is happening and no one is doing anything about it. These are only a few simple ways that sexism could be prevented in sports and may even have an impact on society's views of what a 'man' and 'woman' should be like.
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