On Fox News' "Sports Court", Fox News Contributor Tamara Holder led with a question in whether or not female athletes wear makeup to feel empowered, as a fashion statement, or to sex it up? It's a pretty legit question, and commentators Mark Simone and Bo Dietl received plenty of well-deserved criticism for misogynistic statements. The video is below:
But that's not what I want to talk about here. I want to talk about the point Mark Simone makes when he refers to male athletes being more attractive seeing more success, such as Tom Brady. As a female sports writer who is not shy of admitting having crushes on athletes, I felt I had to weigh in on this.
Does being attractive help for male athletes? Yes and no. If you're attractive you'll get more female fans and be dubbed a heartthrob, but in the end, sports is a meritocracy. Trophies are given to the guys with the best numbers, not the best abs.
What makes this whole argument incredibly stupid (literally the nicest way I could put it) is that attractiveness is completely subjective. I'd bet 99% of straight women would go gaga over Tom Brady, but there isn't a single person around that everyone finds attractive. Are there athletes most can agree are attractive? You bet. Are they sometimes some of the most successful in their sport (Tom Brady, Jonathan Toews, and Derek Jeter for example)? Yes, but they did not become the best at what they do by being blessed with movie star good looks. They became the best in their sports due to thousands of hours of hard work in dedication. They became the best because they never gave up on their dreams and never set a limit for their success, and their list of career achievements prove it. Good looks may give them more attention from young female fans and might get them the "hottest athlete" award in a women's magazine, but at the end of the day every professional athlete desires a championship for their team, and trivial things like that aren't what get them there.
Sure, attractiveness may count when it comes towards popularity. I work as a sports writer and have noticed girls are much more likely to be able to name players who are collectively known as attractive.
The be all end all fact that makes this possibly the dumbest argument ever is that attractiveness is one hundred percent subjective and that professional sports are one of the purest forms of meritocracy out there.
