Women in 'Beauty' Sports

It really took me 25 minutes to read ‘The Gymnast’s Position’ by Dvora Myers published in June 2019 on LONGREADS. At a wordcount of 6257, the essay highlighted the issue of sexual abuse in gymnastics, and the prevalent culture of fear and excellence in college gymnastics. These few years saw spotlight on gymnasts like Simone Biles, UCLA senior Katelyn Ohashi, and of course Aly Raisman. The matter of former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar's steady abuse of the gymnasts went unpunished till last year, thanks to an entire system of wilful ignorance and casual sexism.

There has always been a tension amongst athletes in the so-called “beauty” sports having to justify their athletic bona fides. In ESPN The Magazine’s annual “Body Issue” in 2017, Ashley Wagner defended figure skating and her status as an athlete. “I think a lot of people would be very surprised at the kind of training we have to put in. I am on the ice 6 days a week, I am physically training 3–4 hours a day on the ice, off the ice sometimes up to 2 hours a day. This sport is my life. I feel strongly that I’m an athlete through and through.” A basketball player would never feel the need to insist to a reporter or the general public that they are athletes. It’s taken for granted.

The essay began with the mention of a huge controversy over a billboard (in the photo above) that went up in Salt Lake City two decades ago. It was an advertisement (recruiting and ticketing) by the University of Utah Gymnastics. People protested at how it used 'sex to sell', and how demeaned women to being sex objects first and successful individuals second, and how their sexual attractiveness over-rides their athletic achievements. Oddly, the then head coach of gymnastics at the university Greg Marsden, and apparently even the model of the billboard—then 19-year-old sophomore gymnast (on the 1992-1993 team) Aimee Trapanier herself didn't understand what the fuss was about.

Marsden’s clarification was more than just an attempt to defend a controversial image from criticism. Gymnastics is a sport where aesthetics are foregrounded. It is both art and sport. Gymnasts aren’t simply judged for doing a skill, for landing on the beam; they’re also evaluated on the presentation of their skills, how well they’re executed, their form, the shapes they create with their bodies, the beauty of their movements, and even their static moments. This is even more significant for an event like Trepanier’s floor exercise, the inspiration for her pose and the portion of the routine in which gymnasts are expected to dance as well as tumble. While all of this is hard, if not impossible, to quantify for scoring purposes, this artistry is nevertheless an important part of gymnastics. It’s right there in the sport’s formal designation — artistic gymnastics. 

But talking about beauty in women’s sports can feel problematic. For many women, athletics are supposed to liberate them from the demands of looking a certain way. Sports, we generally think, are supposed to be about what your body can do, not how your body looks. But the image of Trepanier was all beauty with grace notes of strength. It didn’t mark her as an athlete but as a woman.

Well, there's a whole wave of athleisure fashion taking over the city. It won't subside anytime soon as everyone now understands the importance of streamlining one's diet and up fitness levels. I wear leggings all the time too. As a personal choice, I'm not comfortable with wearing just a sports bra at the gym or the studio. There's always a tank top or a rash guard. It does get hot and sweaty after 30 burpees. When I'm out of the fitness venue, I have a tee or sweater, simply because Singapore air-conditioning is too cold. And yes, for decency because I really don't want to deal with stares down my cleavage, and then having to punch somebody in the face. Chances are, I'm usually faster and stronger than whoever is giving leery looks. They tend to be cowards in a confrontation.

But if parents don't educate their children and build the right concepts, we will only skirt around political correctness and superficial courtesies. Misogyny will never recede; society is hard pressed to change. There's a fine balance on insisting on one's right to wear what she pleases, and also tread the standards of decency that form the norm of the particular society she's residing in, or visiting. It's down to that one concept- commonsense and a respect for the culture we live amongst.

With women’s sports, aesthetic still reigns supreme. By that I mean that the female body, whether in motion or static, whether in the athletic context or outside of it, will be objectified and scrutinized for things beyond ability and performance. In sports, as outside of it, a woman’s body remains contested terrain.