I recently came across an exchange that was made between a reporter and Serena Williams after Williams won her historic 22nd Grand Slam title. The reporter was quoted saying: “There will be talk of you going down as one of the greatest female athletes of all time.” Serena replied with: “I prefer… ‘one of the greatest athletes of all time.'” Serena Williams is someone I love to watch succeed because she is such an inspiration to so many female athletes. This exchange between reporter and Serena Williams stuck out to me because it really highlights the discrepancy that exists between the way female athletes are viewed and the way male athletes are viewed. With the 2016 summer Olympics approaching, I think this is an especially important topic that needs to be expounded upon.
As a female athlete, it is especially difficult to reach the same level of fame and stardom as male athletes. Male athletes are already held on a higher pedestal simply because they were born, well… male. Never would you hear a reporter say to a professional male athlete: “There will be talk of you going down as one of the greatest male athletes of all time.” Sorry, but no. The reporter would most likely leave out “male” and simply say, “as one of the greatest athletes of all time.”
Think about the sports that consume ESPN and every other sports network: football, men’s basketball, men’s golf, etc… Women’s sports and female athletes never get nearly as much coverage as their male counterparts. Many would argue that women’s sports are simply just not as exciting. Before I continue any further, I would like to point out the obvious that men are normally both faster and stronger than women. However, that is not justification for the lack of attention given to the women who have trained just as hard and just as long as male athletes. I feel that there is a lack of respect and a lack of recognition towards female athletes that exists within sports broadcasting.
There is an interesting article that I came across written by Andrew Good for USC News. The title of this particular article reads: “When it comes to women in sports, TV news tunes out.” Good makes some very compelling points within this piece about the discrepancies between male and female sports coverage. One fact that stood out to me was that “coverage of women’s sports has barely budged in a quarter-century.” The coverage of women’s sports hasn’t budged within the last quarter-century, however the number of women involved in sports has increased tremendously. Even if you believe that women’s sports should not receive as much air time as men’s sports, you can at least agree that the influx of women in sports warrants more air time than what currently exists.
Shifting topics slightly, I would like to express how excited I am for the upcoming Summer Olympics in Rio and here is why: I believe that the Rio Olympics provides for an opportunity for female athletes to dominate and take center stage. Let me just list a few reasons as to why I feel this way… Gymnast Gabby Douglas will be returning to the Summer Olympics for a second time this year. Not to mention she was an Olympic All-Around Gold Medalist in the previous Summer Olympics. The United States women’s national soccer team will be arriving to the Rio Summer Olympics fresh off of a World Cup win just last summer. Tennis star Serena Williams will be going to Rio after just winning her 22nd Grand Slam title. Kerri Walsh-Jennings, three-time Olympic gold medalist, will be competing for another gold in women’s beach volleyball with partner April Ross.
These are just some of the women who I’m excited to watch succeed in the 2016 Olympics. Don’t get me wrong, I will also be watching and cheering on all of the male Olympic athletes competing in Rio, but I really feel that this is an opportunity for all the women competing for the United States Olympic team to simply excel. I have no doubt that this group of female athletes competing for the United States will lead the way and give the world something to talk about.
