This past week, in response to a colleague's tweet, Sports Illustrated analyst Andy Benoit told the entire Internet that there is nothing in women’s sports worth watching. He has since deleted the tweet and issued an apology. However, that was not good enough for Amy Poelher and Seth Meyers who tore Benoit apart on a segment of “Really?! with Seth and Amy." In typical Poehler-Meyer fashion, the video is hilarious, but it also brings up valid points about challenges faced by women in sports.

First, the perception that women cannot be physically impressive athletes.

While there are hormonal and structural differences between males and females, they do not render female athletes incompetent. As a UConn student, I have seen the women's basketball team dominate in almost every game each season. Anyone who has ever watched olympic gymnastics has seen teenage girls perform feats of strength that are almost incomprehensible. I would challenge anyone with a prejudice against female athletes to tell Serena Williams, Dana Linn Bailey, Lindsay Vaughn, Alex Morgan, Ally Raisman, or Gabby Douglas that they are not strong enough be competitive athletes and see how well that goes for them.

Second, the treatment of females and female athletes in magazines like Sports Illustrated.

Studies have shown that when commenting about female athletes compared to males, far more emphasis is placed on appearance. As a highly popular magazine, Sports Illustrated has a monthly opportunity to change the portrayal of female athletes and shift the conversation to the skill and determination displayed by female athletes every day. Instead, they feature women on less than 5 percent of their covers (excluding the swimsuit edition) and depict the female athletes they do feature in minimal equipment and sexualized positions. In contrast, the Time covers above are action shots that emphasize the strength of the athletes shown. Instead of dedicating an issue to discussing the achievements of female athletes, they choose to devote an entire issue to the cleavage of women who do not play competitive sports.

Third, the lack of air time given to female athletes on major networks.

While there are stand outs in women’s sports like the Williams sisters, Lindsey Vaughn, and Rhonda Rousey, most female athletes are rarely talked about on the news or ESPN, especially in comparison to male athletes. The WNBA and NBA are owned by the same entity, yet the NBA is constantly promoted while I personally have never seen a WNBA commercial. The early stages of the Women’s World Cup were barely talked about. However, the millions of viewers who tuned in to watch the US women's soccer team compete clearly disagree with the idea that women's sports are not exciting. There is plenty of drama in women's sports, yet the organizations that control their visibility do not support these impressive women who work just as hard as their male counterparts on a daily basis.

Female athletes work day in and day out to be the best at what they do and they deserve recognition for it. Perhaps Beniot and the rest of the media should take Poehler and Meyer's advice and dedicate some energy to increasing the focus on the athleticism of female athletes.