Sexism In Sports

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Why can’t women be on the playing field as men?
An analysis On Gender Inequality In The World Of Sports
When I was younger sports thought me a whole lot about competiveness, teamwork and most of all togetherness. It honestly didn’t matter about race, cultural/religious beliefs or even what gender you were, but then as I got older I realized that it really did matter. Sexism is the belief or mind-set that one sex (usually the male) is innately superior to, more skilled, or more worthy than the other is (definition). Sexism in sports dates back to B.C.'s, married women were not allowed to participate in, or to watch, the ancient Olympic Games, however, unmarried women could attend the competition (Olympic.org). In 1972 a policy known as Title …show more content…

Despite the Federal Policies, forms of sexism still exist in the world of sports through stereotypes, lack of recognition and also gender pay gap.

To begin, the media focuses on female athletes' femininity and sexuality over their achievements on the court and field. While female athleticism challenges gender norms, women athletes continue to be depicted in traditional roles that reaffirm their femininity - as wives and mothers or sex objects. By comparison, male athletes are framed according to heroic masculine ideals that honor courage, strength, and endurance (Playing Unfair). In other words, a lot of people assume female athletes are timid, don't train as hard, and are not as durable as they really are, whereas men are portrayed completely differently as their counterparts. Female are not viewed for having that competitive edge that men do because it is said somewhat ‘animalistic’ for them to have, their bodies are exploited through bikini photoshoots rather than competitive action shots that man possesses (Inequality of Sport). For example, the tennis sister’s Venus and Serena Williams have …show more content…

In Saudi Arabia, physical education for girls is banned in the public school system and while there are more than 150 official sports clubs regulated by the sports ministry general presidency of youth welfare, none of them even allow women on the grounds, never mind to actually play (IOC/Saudi Arabia). Saudi women are also not allowed to leave the country, Human Rights Watch called on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to make ending discrimination against women in sports in the kingdom a condition for Saudi Arabia’s participation in Olympic sporting events, including the 2012 London Games, “the fact that women and girls violate cannot train to compete clearly violates the Olympic Charter’s pledge to equality and gives the Olympic movement itself a black eye” (IOC/Saudi).” The IOC should live up to Olympic values and press the Saudis to start women’s sport programs as a condition for remaining within the Olympic family,” Wilk said, “Sports can be a great cause for good, but forcing Saudi women to watch all-male teams represent them every four years can only demoralize those aspiring to sporting glory” (IOC). Obesity rates have been growing in Saudi Arabia in recent years, in particular among women, as have related diseases, such as diabetes and

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