Social media recently came to a standstill when a photo began trending of Kenya’s women volleyball team, Malkia Strikers, hugging after a beach volleyball game. In the series of photos, the Strikers are seen in various poses donning their sports kits: black biker-shorts, some with bikini bottoms and sports bras.
Many Kenyans on social media critiqued the photos: while some felt that the uniforms were ‘exposing too much’, others held the opinion that the attire was ‘sexy and perfect for the beach’.
The one unanswered question was; were the kits appropriate for the photos, or was it the photos that were taken in an inappropriate manner?
For the longest time, society has been run on patriarchal rules, which has influenced how women are viewed. The same is happening in athletics, where female athletes and sports women are objectified - both in dressing and presentation. The sexual innuendo is unmistakable. Photographers wait for the ‘best action shot’, often revealing more skin than is necessary.
Not only that, women are required - by gaming laws - to wear tight-fitting clothing such as bikinis, tights, tank tops and sports bras. In contrast, men have the option of wearing track suits, shorts, vests and Tee-shirts. The begging question is: why are women dressed differently, and why are women’s sports covered differently than men’s sports?
“I despise sexist innuendos thrown at female players, coaches, and administrators, as well as the disparities surrounding women’s sport,” Evelyne Watta, a celebrated sports journalist says.
“What do I mean by sexist remarks? - the media, fans, and other practitioners who objectify female athletes and choose to focus on the aesthetics of women’s sport, rather than celebrating their strength and accomplishments. Women are initially and foremost shown as sexy creatures, mothers, and wives, followed by sports achievers,” she adds.
Watta argues that many sports media outlets still place a greater emphasis on a female athletes’ femininity, role as mothers, physical attractiveness, and wardrobe than on her athletic abilities.
“Female athletes who adhere to beauty standards receive greater coverage and attention on sports pages, which are sadly dominated by men in key leadership positions such as sport editors and sub-editors,” says Watta.
The newsmaker says even words are used to objectify women, such as ‘sexy’ and ‘pretty’ female volleyball players, but we don’t hear much about a ‘tall’ and ‘handsome’ basketball player.
“I once pointed it out to an editor who told me that they used ‘her’ a lot to beautify and attract the perceived majority male readers who read sports more ‘with her cute face and catchy volleyball outfit’,” she says.
Watta says the only way out is to recognise athletes for their accomplishments. When they score goals, they scream and describe how beautifully their goal or race went.
“We never see fathers of two being honoured when they score because of their sporting strengths, not their appearances or their family successes, such as being a mother of two.
“The emphasis is on their achievements on the field of play. When it comes to female athletes, we need to be careful about the words we use. Use flower adjectives to describe the sporting strengths instead of words like gorgeous, flowing hair, and so on,” she says.
Watta further believes that female athletes and administrators should speak out against it. Unfortunately, most are starved for attention and are afraid to criticise the media outlets that have given them room. Others are simply too ignorant to pick up on the subtleties. Journalists in the sports industry that do this are simply going with the flow.
But it’s not all doom and gloom; several major newspapers and international sports agencies are leading the charge to eliminate sexualised reporting.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) was at the forefront of this, publishing an updated version of guidelines on how sports media should cover, photograph, or portray female athletes and minorities soon before the Tokyo Olympics, and there was a difference in how the Olympics were covered.
Judy Kaberia, Executive Director of the Association of Media Women in Kenya (AMWIK), believes that gender reporting should be taught to journalists in order to avoid reportage that denigrates women in sports.
“I’m not sure why their focus is always turned to when a lady is bending or stretching; why are we so concerned with clothing and beauty? The emphasis has shifted to heroism,” she says.
Adding that, “If we are going to mentor young athletes and women who aspire to be great athletes one day, we must adopt a strategy that does not reduce women to flower girls as a result of a misguided attitude that diminishes their valour and achievement.
“How come we don’t see photographs of guys with their sexual organs covered,” adds Kaberia.
Sports editor Isaac Swila says the occurrences aren’t common, aside from a few isolated incidents that need to be addressed as they arise.
However, as an editor, his focus is on the player’s performance on the field, and thus as a journalist, his main job is to convey and pass on the message, which will be based on how the player performed.
Philadelphia Olando, the Kenya Lioness Rugby Captain, believes that the greatest approach to market women’s sports is through good headlines and heroic photographs rather than pictures of women wearing bras and riding motorcycles.
“I recall a situation during the Elgon Cup where a writer snapped a photo of female athletes eating and used the heading ‘A lioness eager for Chicken.’ Such headlines undermine sports women’s self-esteem, present them in a negative light, and kill their spirit,” she says.
Ruth Adhiambo, a central midfielder for the Strathmore hockey club, says she thought a story would make her a hero, but it instead broke her confidence, and she avoided being associated with the embarrassing headline ‘Adhiambo is itching for the stick,’ which they didn’t agree on during the interview.
The 25-year-old was skeptical. “I felt awful because they infringed on my rights; there was no need to draw attention to it because it eventually caused me to suffer,” Adhiambo adds.
The good news is that the business is attracting female journalists who will help to bring some sense to the way women’s sports are covered.
“We’ve also seen some change and push in having women’s sports felt,” says Ambassador Amina Mohammed, the Cabinet Secretary for Sports.
According to Olando, “Let us not focus on physical appearance but on the accomplishments of female athletes; objective reporting will encourage even aspiring sports journalists.”00 at street value locally but exporters would sell it at between Sh5, 950 and Sh9, 800 according to a dealer.
