Women in Sports

As I read about women in sports and how they are viewed, it reminded me of a video clip I had seen last year in another sports related class. The clip was from around the time when I was in elementary school and it showed soccer star Mia Hamm during a (I believe) FIFA World Cup Chamipionship when she made a final goal and the American Team won. She was so happy to win that she tore off her sweaty jersey and was hugged by the rest of her team. To me, I saw an athlete celebrating a victory with other teammates. But to other people in the class, they were surprised that a female athelete would rip off her jersey in front of others, even though she was wearing a sports bra that covered more than half her torso.
That got me thinking, why do some people make such a big deal about events such as that, even when it didn't really affect little children's thinking about sports, as some may be worried it did? Some people in the class went as far as saying 'she's a woman, she shouldn't be doing things like that'. It's opinions like that which make one wonder if we really are trying as a whole population to be more impartial and gender neutral when it comes to sports. I'm not trying to point my finger at anyone in particular, but I've noticed that there are a great number of people who claim to be neutral and then seem surprised at something that one gender may do that isn't the norm for them. How would you as an individual react?


Sarah Garcia
M 7P