Australia’s women’s team stood proudly atop the podium, gold medals slung around their necks in what was undoubtedly yet another proud moment for the athletes, and for the nation.
Yet, in the moments following this extraordinary feat, a handful of words from the commentary box cast a shadow over their glory.
“Well, the women just finishing up,” remarked EuroSport commentator Bob Ballard. “You know what women are like… hanging around, doing their make-up.”
The sports world has a long and troubling history of diminishing women’s achievements and expertise. The incident with Bob Ballard is merely the latest in a series of high-profile cases that highlight the persistent problem of sexism in sports media.
In a 2004 interview, Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) President Sepp Blatter claimed female soccer players wear skimpier uniforms and tighter shorts to both promote “a more female aesthetic” and “increase popularity of the game”.
He went on to say, “Let the women play in more feminine clothes like they do in volleyball… Female players are pretty, you excuse me for saying so, and they already have some different rules to men — such as playing with a lighter ball. That decision was taken to create a more female aesthetic, so why not do it in fashion?”
In 2013, BBC commentator John Inverdale remarked that Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli was “never going to be a looker”, reducing her athletic prowess to her appearance.
“Do you think Bartoli’s dad told her when she was little, ‘You’re never going to be a looker. You’ll never be a Sharapova, so you have to be scrappy and fight,'” Inverdale said at the time.
In 2017, NFL quarterback Cam Newton also sparked outrage during a press conference when he responded to a question from reporter Jourdan Rodrigue about receiver routes. Before answering, Newton smirked and said, “It’s funny to hear a female talk about routes. It’s funny.”
It’s time for the world of sports commentary to catch up; to match the excellence we see in the pool and on the field with excellence in the broadcast booth.
Source: Why are women still facing sexism in sports in 2024?