Gender-associated stereotypes within sports, such as ballet being perceived as a women’s sport or football for men, can discourage people from participating in activities that bring them joy.
This topic gained attention at the 2024 Olympics. Female boxer Imane Khelif, who won a gold medal, faced many comments about her gender for being “too masculine.” This highlights the impact of stereotypes on athletes.
Several sports have gender norms, and these impact the players and sporting events. For example, in gymnastics, men’s and women’s routines are different. Women perform floor music routines while men do not. Deveaus School of Gymnastics says the reason for the differences in routines is to emphasize the different strengths between men and women. Men show their upper body strength with things like the rings, and women highlight balance and grace.
Kenzey Clark says “If a majority of females show interest in a sport society will start to believe that it’s only a female sport, and then it changes who is socially allowed to do it.”
Clearinghouse for Sports Studies shows that gender stereotypes contribute to young women dropping out of sports because of these traditional norms and the pressures associated with them.
Northwest High School Freshman, Maya Harris has started to shatter typical stereotypes by being on the school wrestling team. During an interview with Harris, she was asked how it felt to be the one shattering those stereotypes.
“I’m pretty proud of it, you don’t see many women out there, and the ones you do see are more masculine girls” said Harris.
However, a great deal of people still have contradicting beliefs and values. During the same interview, Harris stated “At my previous school I got judged for being on the team… but Northwest has been different, they like to see us win and help us.”
It is not just women who experience these gender expectations, men are affected by gender norms too. Men often are judged if they do not fit average body types, and are bullied if they participate in “feminine sports.”
Tyler Kraus said “Men most likely face the problem of being too strong or too physical looking for a sport than they need to be. ”
Harmful social and gender norms in sports can have a negative impact on the mental health of athletes and students. According to an Annals of Joint article, the psychological makeup of an athlete is likely as important in determining that person’s physical ability.
Frontiers.org states that children often categorize sports by gender from a young age, forming their attitudes and behaviors toward sports in this way. It also states that historical and cultural events have shaped these beliefs and values.
Throughout the years traditional gender roles and societal normalities have impacted sports teams, players, the willingness of new participants to try out, and how the sports themselves are played. However, many sports teams and committees have become more relaxed with these views they still impact and affect people and sports today.
