“Women’s sports are B-O-R-I-N-G.”

“Women’s sports are B-O-R-I-N-G.” I specifically remember making this statement a few times in my youth as well as having heard it reiterated by peers throughout college. I mean no one likes a slower, less physical, and passionless game…right? That’s why male sports are more entertaining to watch – or so I’ve always been convinced. What if I told you the development of women in athletics is just getting warmed up? What if I told you that, in guaranteeing more participation, there will be an exponential growth in the level of competition, within the majority of the world's nations, an increase in confidence and, potentially, an increase in life pursuits in young girls and women all over, and the most obvious more exciting performances. These aren’t new thoughts and yet we still find millions of young girls being left out of recreational activities, due to a plethora of reasons. Reasons that have little to nothing to do with biological determinants. To highlight some things to erase our negative perception of women’s sports I chose to use basketball as one of the clear-cut differences in our perception of men’s and women’s athletics.

Before you read on, watch the video below and take a look at the way basketball was played, by men, in the early 20th century…

Within a few minutes a lot can be noticed;

1. Lack of “pure” athleticism.
   By far the most common insult to women’s athletics is how “unathletic” they appear…well…let’s call a spade a spade. If the original players, being men, played in such an unathletic way and somehow have amassed skill levels which we see today, that should tell you something…right?

2. Lack of awareness
   Guys standing around waiting for rebounds. Players barely hustling and, quite frankly, continuing to look clueless as ever. Athleticism can’t be all to blame when many of these athletes look in pretty good shape, physically. Awareness is a gift few have, and many have to develop. It takes time – meaning, a lot of mental and physical conditioning attributed to more practice.

3. Unconventional form (sloppy form)
   The most athletic guys out there have difficulty forming a “shot”. There are guys in the NBA who just can’t seem to get it together – you know who they are – and yet, they dominate in other factions. Time and time again the “you shoot like a girl” is reiterated and accepted. It’s becoming less of an insult these days but if she’s dropping buckets, does her shot really matter? Do all NBA players have one shot form? No. It varies. Shooting varies on a lot of components; from height, strength, ability, coordination, hand size, etc.

4. Boredom
   “Man, I can’t watch women’s basketball they don’t do anything but run around and lob the ball up”. Fact, women’s basketball is filled with fundamentals. That’s not a bad thing. Women’s basketball also tends to play more team ball. Reasoning behind this could be a lack of extremely dominant players, coaching, player confidence, game strategy, etc. Those games where there is an extremely dominant player do exist and it’s obvious to notice – that gap is widening. Yet, I specifically remember an NBA team that would constantly be criticized for playing “boring” fundamental basketball…you know…the team that shared dominance in the 2000’s…Spurs. Call it boring, they call it winning. Up until around the late 70’s, basketball wasn’t all to interesting to watch – that’s my take any way. Today, some guys are going out of their way to make the game exciting. It’s no jab, but windmills and other acrobatic dunks are additives to the game, they aren’t prerequisites. It’s unfortunate that women have to be compared to this, I don’t call it fair, but that’s part of the developmental process. It will take time.

What I find interesting is how we don’t necessarily blame the men, of earlier days for, lacking in skill level – we almost expect that. We compare them, rightfully, to the times they played in. Take notes.

The exceptions

There are certain female sports we do watch, with excitement, that which we don’t execute such comparisons to men. Gymnastics, Volleyball, Track and Field, and Tennis, to name a few, are great examples. Yet…there’s something strikingly different from those sports and others such as Soccer, Softball, and Basketball…almost as if they are less “masculine” thus, warranting different expectations and interests. Is there a misogynistic reasoning behind why interest in those sports, where women wear more reveling clothes, appears to be less stringent on comparisons to male sports? I personally believe so. Matter of fact, a good comparison is with how people talk about the wardrobe of women in sports.

Search on YouTube “Female Sports”. My search led me to the first eight videos being about women’s image rather than actual athletic abilities. Some would argue this is expected, with majority of YouTube’s viewers being men. After a TedTalk video, the following videos are, again, focused on the image of women rather than their actual athletic talents. Their talents are highlighted, YouTube isn’t all that bad, but there does seem to be a stark difference between searching “Female Sports” and “Male Sports”. I’m not pointing fingers at anyone, but again, the specific sports chosen to exemplify beauty are often those where women wear more revealing clothes. Thus, drawing more interest from viewers (male and female).

So…where do we go from here?

1. Participatory Support
   Men have hardly had to stand by to participate in athletics – with the exception of segregated leagues, which limited minority players for a while and the disabled. We have all agreed that no one individual should be limited to athletic participation for any reason…at least in much of developing nations. A Nike ad put it pretty well:

“If you let me play, if you let me play sports. I will like myself more; I will have more self-confidence. If you let me play sports. If you let me play, I will be sixty percent less likely to get breast cancer; I will suffer less depression. If you let me play sports, I will be more likely to leave a man who beats me. If you let me play, I will be less likely to get pregnant before I want to. I will learn what it means to be strong, if you let me play...”

Look, this isn’t going to be a geopolitical push to change cultural norms – which I really would love to do since much of women’s limitations are due to cultural barriers – but there’s a reason why women in the west continue to be strong examples for athletic fortitude and promise. Does the US produce the best women’s athletes in the world? You’d have to ask Brazil, Kenya, China, and several dozen other countries, that question. But the US does produce many great athletes due to its efforts in initiating young girls into athletics…but it’s not enough. Many stereotypes and misconceptions continue to limit girls and some of them are often led by women themselves, who grow up demonizing athletic participation. Here are a few of the myths I’ve heard along the way.

a) Girls can’t play while they’re on their period (menstruation)
Fact, they can. According to Sandy Knauf, a nurse practitioner at Malone University, “women/girls who are physically active actually tolerate their periods better and those who are not…”. A matter of fact, girls who tend to be more active are more likely to skip a few cycles while others have been known to skip many cycles. Stop shaming, or feeling ashamed, for such a natural bodily function. Playing through cycles can allow for increased tolerance. That doesn’t mean those couple of days of cramps won’t spring up but sitting around and waiting for the pain away won’t solve it either. It’s all about knowing when and planning for the worst.

b) Being good at sports makes you unattractive
My personal take is this: men who shame women who participate in sports feel threatened by the idea of women being able to defend themselves as well as fend for themselves. Fitness is a great benefit to attractiveness and this “myth” needs to be flushed for the trash it is. Let’s also remind ourselves that attractiveness, when it comes to dating, is not a strong factor in relationship security nor is it going to provide you with the level of respect you think you deserve. Sitting on your butt all day isn’t exactly an attractive look…but again, this isn’t about how women appear anymore than it is about the threat it poses to certain men. Athletics is not a beautify competition (ok, maybe the

c) There is no money in women’s sports
Serena Williams comes to mind when I think of the financial benefits behind women’s sports – granted tennis is in a special league of its own. Sure, endorsements are a great financial benefit to playing sports, even for men, but consider this equation:

More support for young girls = more girls willing to play
More girls willing to play = increased participation
Increased participation = increased fanmanship
Increased fanmanship = increased viewership
Increased viewership = endorsements
Endorsements = increased revenue
Increased revenue = more girls wanting to participate

Boiling it down so simply looks, well, simple, and that’s because it really isn’t rocket science. Believe it or not, ticket sales for certain women’s sports (softball and basketball, specifically) will never rival that of their male counterparts unless we increase our support for young girls. Realistically, the numbers may never be equal, but they can be narrowed much more if we try.

d) Girls just shouldn’t play sports
So, they should just watch and cheer? Is there anything less progressive today than telling someone they can’t do something because of irrational thoughts? Humans can’t physically fly in the sky, that’s a rational thought. Girls shouldn’t play sports because…eggs. In my 27 years of existence, and even in my least supportive days, I’ve never felt women couldn’t/shouldn’t play and I still can’t find a strong argument that supports the notion that they should be allowed to.

1. Patience and Development
   I’m an active supporter for everyone (men, women, disabled, privileged, disadvantaged, etc.) maintaining healthy and active lives. Sports can provide a much healthier and active life. We shame young girls for being competitive and we shame adult women for showing passionate, athletic, aggression even though we almost always support it in male sports – unless we want to make a spectacle out of someone. Let’s stop repressing them, the same way we wouldn’t repress Brady, Lebron, Tiger, or a list of other male athletes, for showing their grit in their respective sports. Allow them to exercise positive aggression and in turn it will develop their competitive drive in a healthy way, much like how we’d like to train our boys.

I hope this isn’t taken the wrong way, but women are behind in the development of their physical skills – that’s obvious. There are a few who standout amongst their competitors but it’s time we start expecting more, in a healthy way, from female athletes…

I would love to see more of this

1. Development
   It takes more than just societies expectations to create a sporting culture, especially if we’re talking about women’s sports. Families and individual athletes need to take more ownership of their athletic capabilities.

Families – Be there, push them, and pick them up. Go outside and attempt to play catch with your girls, take them on runs, watch sports with them but most of all, be present. Coach them the way you’d coach your boys and expect nothing short of success.

Athletes – Practice, practice, and practice. When you’re tired of practicing, practice the small stuff. Create muscle memory and perfect those little things. Create a work habit and stay consistent. There’s no harm in watching sports on television but get out and do. Go and play. Set yourself apart by doing the things most don’t want to do.

1. More Patience
   Time heals all. Only recently did a girl, not over 6’3, dunk in a game. Is it unlikely to hear more of this happening in the near future? I doubt it. A couple of years ago a high school teen by the name of Candace Hill ran times that would have landed her on the podium at several boy’s state track meets. That’s impressive. Not because she could beat boys, not because as a teen, she could compete with female Olympians, but because she was defying what many thought couldn’t be done.

2. More support
   I just want to reiterate this point. Behind every great successful athlete are individuals who believed in them. The power of belief. Athletes, in my opinion are not born, they are made. If we limit even the most physically gifted person from playing sports, what we have is walking potential. I see these people all the time, and I’m sure you do as well. It’s time we give our girls the push they need.

A little anecdote
I teach in a rural village in Ethiopia. My girls don’t have a lot of confidence. They don’t have many options either. In one of our clubs I wanted to address the lack of confidence and self-perception. To my surprise, it was much lower than I expected. Girls calling themselves stupid and ugly and mentioning the lack of support from family and their peers. It was tough to hear. One of those moments where you know things are stacked against you…but I remembered the privilege I hold. I’m a man. A black man, from America, who is their teacher, with a degree, and “worldly” experience – been to a few places. I used this privilege I have to show them different important women around the world, the different career opportunities, the female rule breakers and exceptions, the importance of women in society, and so on and so on. It’s been a work in progress, but what I’ve noticed from this was increased participation in my female students, increased attendance, and for many, increased academic performance (within my English class). I’m still slapped with reality that many of the girls just won’t see much potential in themselves and that no matter how hard I try, I will never get across to 100 percent of them, let alone 90…but as an educator, that’s a burning reality we have to accept and strive to improve, regardless of the fact.

Final Thoughts
The photo above was my first encounter, since being in Ethiopia, of young girls being active in sports. This was what gave me the purpose to write this and briefly investigate some social issues plaguing women’s sports. I’m learning everyday to say less and ask more. The world continues to shock me, but this dilemma is near to me because I have always had the privilege and support to succeed as an athlete. I want to take all that I’ve gathered and share it. Enable others to enjoy and take away from sports what I was able to. It’s a great feeling and I’m looking forward to doing my part in combatting this.

I hope you will to.

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