Millions of people all over the world tuned in to watch the 2016 Summer Olympics that were recently held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. And the people who were unable to watch the Olympics when they were shown on television, they watched news channels or read articles to find out the results or they tuned in to the Olympic Coverage. Although the Olympic coverage is a very good way to find out the results of the summer games, the authors, bloggers, and news broadcasters have been very opinionated and prejudice, especially this year.
Corey Cogdell is an American Trapshooter and a two-time Olympic bronze medalist. She won her first bronze medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics and her second at the Summer Olympics in 2016. After her win, The Chicago Tribune shared an article on Twitter with the headline, “Wife of a Bears’ lineman wins a bronze medal today in Rio Olympics.” Although the statement is true, her success is not because of the success of her husband. Did her husband play her sport for her? Did he spend months preparing? Was the medal placed around his neck? No, no, no. The Chicago Tribune’s post is 100% sexist because they failed to give Cogdell the credit she deserves. They failed to give Cogdell her time in the spotlight by making her win about her husband.
Simone Biles is a three times all-around World Champion, fourteen times Worlds Medalist, and 2016 Olympic all-around Champion. She is only 19 years old and she has already achieved so much in her life. She works hard, does her best, and is a role model to many girls all over the world, especially the gymnastics and cheerleading world. After NBC commentator, Jim Watson, said that he “thinks she might even go higher than the men” and compared her to male athletes, Biles said, “I’m not the next Usain Bolt or Michael Phelps. I’m the first Simone Biles.” Not only was she compared to male athletes but she and her teammate, Gabby Douglas, were judged by people all over the world for their hair while competing.
It is no secret that the African-American community is very particular about their hair, but the fact that people all over the world expect Gabby and Simone to have expensive hairpieces in while competing for the Gold medal is ridiculous. I can only imagine how hard practicing most days and nights to perfect their vault, floor, bars, and beam routines can be, so I’m sure the last thing the fabulous Olympic Medalists are worried about is what their hair looks like.
There are many more examples of how the Olympic Coverage was racist and sexist, from verified twitter accounts recognizing women’s husbands, to recognizing them for their race rather than saying their names. The Olympic Coverage excellently portrayed how cruel the world can be. It has been hundreds of years since women first obtained equal rights. It’s sad that even now we have to fight to be heard and to be seen the same way as men in society’s eyes. Women should be recognized when they achieve greatness without being compared to men. As an athlete, I can easily put myself in the amazing female medalists’ shoes, this controversy is close to my heart. It pains me to see women still not being treated equally and I hope that one day a women can receive a Gold Medal and just be recognized for her talent and her skills rather than being compared to a man or recognized for her race.
