The 2012 Olympics in London was the first time women participated in every available Olympic event. This happened over a century after women were permitted to partake in the games. Since then, women have made a name for themselves and excelled greatly in many areas of sports. Despite this remarkable progress made over the years, unfair treatment towards sportswomen abounds.
Over the years, women haven’t participated in sports for many reasons. Existing stereotypes such as women are weak, incapable, physically unskilled, and have poor decision-making skills have pushed many women into believing that sports are not designed for them. For instance, people once thought that female football players would be unable to score goals because they were biologically unfit. Thankfully, many of these fallacies have been laid to rest.
The blessings of partaking in sporting activities are innumerable; improved health, access to economic opportunities, mental health boosts, a sense of community, societal growth and development, etc. Why should women and young girls be left out of this?
Women worldwide keep breaking the glass ceiling in many areas — sports included. Nevertheless, biased sports regulations and societal expectations still prevent women’s participation in sports. Black women are the worst hit as they face prejudice due to their race on top of their gender. Their amazing feats are devalued, dismissed, and constantly subject to scrutiny.
In 2021, Black swimmers were disappointed when the International Swimming Federation (FINA) banned the use of the Soul Cap (a large swim cap designed to protect black hair) at the Tokyo Olympic games because it did not conform to the “natural form of the head”. This odd move led to disapproval and petitions from many groups who described the ban as insensitive and discriminatory.
Shall we bring it home to Nigeria, where girls make up to 60% of out-of-school children? In a world where a child’s first introduction to sports occurs at school, many girls are already disadvantaged.
Many patriarchal values still reign supreme in Nigeria, causing girls who pick up an interest in sports to get tagged as masculine or deviants from existing feminine norms. As a result, a fair amount of girls and women lose interest from the get-go. The few who persevere face difficulties as they try to excel in a society with little or no regard for their talent.
As with many male-dominated fields, Nigerian women in sports also encounter never-ending incidents of sexual harassment, lack of representation in leadership positions and the media, poor training facilities, inequality in pay, and little support from their fellow citizens, families, and government.
A study conducted in 2013 on media coverage of sports in Nigeria showed the maximum coverage for men to be 92.6% and that of women 28.4%. This discovery isn’t different from global statistics where women’s sports account for 4% of media coverage, with emphasis on their physical appearance rather than their skills.
Women in sports demand more visibility. They desire a platform for their stories to be heard. Young girls need more models to admire and look up to. We need more women to take an active interest in sports. We need more women playing sports, more women in sports media, more women as sports fans, more women investing in sports, and more women in sports medicine.
More recently, the media has proven to be an essential tool in pushing the normalisation and acceptance of women in sports. Sports fans can now engage with fellow enthusiasts, watch live games from anywhere in the world and display their unwavering support for their favourite sports personalities. As a result of this heavy reliance on media as a point of interaction, sports stars, organisations and brands are now more accountable for their actions and views.
On May 12 2022, the Nigerian government placed a two-year ban on the participation of its national basketball teams in international competitions. This rash decision caused the female basketball team (D’Tigress) to miss out on the women’s basketball World Cup held in Australia.
However, the women’s team did not go down without a fight. In the days that followed, they pleaded their cause on social media; first, with a press release expressing their displeasure on the matter, they kept the conversation alive by engaging the general public and other stakeholders through Twitter Spaces. When the ban was repealed six weeks later, they did not hesitate to share this development and appreciate everyone who got involved.
Now we know that women have the collective power to dominate and level the playing field in sports. We also understand the importance of media in increasing visibility in this area. How can we get more women to participate in sports?
Through podcasts! Hear me out. I know this sounds absurd. I’m not suggesting that podcasts will make these problems go away. It’s quite the opposite. We can use podcasts to inform women of the current opportunities and challenges in sports and then proffer beneficial solutions.
Podcasts as a tool for change
Good podcasts always aim to inspire, educate and entertain. Although many podcasts are not begotten with the idea of sparking social change, some inadvertently do. The most crucial point is that podcasts tell stories that motivate people to do better and think better for the benefit of themselves and others.
Today, many podcasts practise advocacy by highlighting and discussing social issues, thus making their audience a part of something bigger than them.
Just Women’s Sports is one company making a change in media coverage of women’s sports. Through podcasts, newsletters, live events, etc., its founders have used their platform to advocate for the welfare and recognition of sportswomen by telling candid stories and taking actions that enable direct access between female sports players and their supporters by providing them with “everything they need to see and know”. Following the podcast launch in 2020, the Just Women’s Sports podcast saw a hundred thousand downloads in just two weeks. With massive funding and support from female athletes and big corporations, this organisation is making tremendous changes in women’s sports.
It is hard to preach and ignite social change in a society where its members are not privy to the ills that abound. Only well-informed people can bring about social change. Reducing social advocacy to mere mentions of statistics lowers empathy and interest. Introducing real stories about real people makes advocacy easier because it pushes people to care about issues they have never paused to think about. This is because a compelling story causes listeners to make a connection — they see similarities between themselves and the subject. After a connection forms, they understand the story and can relate to their struggles. This feeling transforms into empathy and causes the audience to look for a way to help or make things different (social change).
Women’s voices need to be amplified. Role models for upcoming women in sports are desired more than ever. We can engage and interest more women in sports using podcasts. Powerful stories create a shared understanding, respect and appreciation for our humanity. This way, women can connect to sportswomen's pains, joys, losses, and success stories. It is also a beautiful way to celebrate the achievements of women so far and work towards providing a better world for those who come after.
Monthly Check-In
I want to begin by officially welcoming Imelda to the team.
This month, Imelda had reasons to celebrate. Even though she was neck-deep in comms and strategy work, she marked family events and run a 10k. Yup! You heard that right. Imelda took part in the Lagos Women Run 10-kilometre marathon and has a medal and certificate to prove it. You can learn about her feat here.
On the other side of Lagos, Mo had his hands full creating freaking awesome audio. He’s working on a podcast that will launch soon, so get ready. What’s more, he produced two stories for an audio contest. Please click on the links below to give them a listen. Don’t forget to send him your reviews!
The past weeks have been a struggle for me, especially with writing the newsletter. But I survived. Mo put me on a Project 50 Challenge where we consistently engage in specific productive activities for 50 days. It has been exciting, for the most part. Also, I was horrified and oddly intrigued by the crimes of Cordelia Botkin, who committed one of America’s first murders by mail.
It was a pleasure catching up. Don’t forget to hit the subscribe button (if you haven’t).
We are excited to announce our new podcast ‘It Happened In Nigeria’ will be out in 7 days! Join us on this journey by following our social media pages.
Till next time, ciao!
this is so well written, well done 👏🏼