There is an episode of Friends
The one with the football
Phoebe has no idea
Rachel just can’t play -
“Go long, sweetie”
And Monica is overly competitive
(And neurotic
And crazy
And the macho one next to her brother
Who is an academic and therefore kind of wussy
So they balance each other out)
Tomorrow, in real life,
Is The Big Game.
The most watched
Sporting event
In America,
The Super Bowl.
The focus of the game,
Apart from the advertising,
Will be the men.
In the world of American football
Women
Are the cheerleaders, metaphorical or real
Playing the feminine, on-looking,
Supportive roles
In 2011
The American NFL did open up the game
To women players
In March 2013
The first woman, Lauren Silberman, went to regional try outs.
As of Super Bowl 2014, no woman has been selected for an NFL team.
But there are women football players
Who play
Full contact American football
(And don’t wear bikinis to play)
The Independent Women’s Football League
And Spring Football League
Represent over forty teams
Across America
When the New York Sharks
Professional Women’s Football Team
Appeared on Good Day New York
The male host, in his introduction, quipped
At the first Modern Olympic Games in 1896
Women were not permitted to compete
As it was felt their presence would be
Impractical
Uninteresting
Unaesthetic and
Incorrect
(Though a few women did compete, in
Tennis, golf, croquet, and sailing)
It was not until the 2012 Olympics
In London
That every participating country
Had a female athlete present
Today, in 2014
The Tour de France
Olympic Ski jumping
The Mavericks International Surfing Competition
And 5 set tennis matches at top tournament level
Are closed to women competitors
While major sporting events
Super Bowl, FIFA World Cup, State of Origin, The Ashes
Have women’s teams at amateur, or even professional levels
In their respective sports
The BIG GAME
The highlight of the sporting calendar
Is always the men’s competition.
The press barely reports
Matches, games, and results
Of women’s sporting events
In the USA
In 2009
A twenty year study
Found that 96% of
Sports media coverage
Was devoted to men’s sports
Similar statistics can be found
In Australia
Where in 2010
9% of sports coverage in the news
Was about women’s sport
Or in the UK
Where in 2013
The Guardian newspaper featured just
2.5% of articles about women in sport
So tomorrow is the Big Game
And my (now) home state is playing
But I won’t be watching
I’ll be channeling my
Inner Rachel
Going long
And seeking out the women’s games.
I want to live in a world
Where women matter
Take centre stage
As competitors
Athletes and
Sporting heroes
And are recognised
For their efforts and prowess
And are represented as more than
Unknowing, incompetent, and neurotic.
Women play sport.
Let's support them
As much as we
Cheer on the men.
The end.
I have a team for you - the Uconn Women's Basketball Team. The only sport I follow.
ReplyDeleteThanks Patty, I'll have to check them out! :)
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