Body Image; why do we teach young girls to care more about how they look and second about their talent (Part 1)

Rebecca Adlington- “It’s hard for a woman. A woman has to deal with it – and that’s never easy.”

While on a recent shopping spree, I could not help but overhear a group of teenage girls talking about how much they loved swimming but did not want to go due to not feeling comfortable in a swimming costume in the fear of society judging on the way people look. This left me thinking about how we could get more girls participating in sport and left me with some unanswered questions: why do we teach young girls to care more about how they look and second about their talent or having fun? As a swimmer myself I could relate to not feeling confident and having moments of self-doubt which has left me thinking that as a coach I should be doing more.

Female body image is one of the biggest contributing factors preventing women from being physically active. A recent Sport England report found that 75% of the women they surveyed wanted to take part in sport, but were subdued by fear of being judged on their appearance and ability.

 

Mo’ne Davis

mone davisMo’ne Davis, a 14 year-old baseball player was the first ever girl to pitch a shutout in the Little League World Series. In 2014 Mo’ne was on the front cover of Sports Illustrated, when asked how she felt about being on the cover she responded with “just to, like, see my face on here is pretty cool, but not the face that I’m making…” This is an incredible achievement from such a young woman yet her first response is not talking about her great achievement but in fact her appearance. In a recent survey of British Female athletes by BT Sport, 67% said they feared that the media valued their appearance over their sporting achievements. Also in the findings they thought how they looked was more important to the public than the medals they won.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rebecca Adlington

rebecca adlingtonMeanwhile more than 89% said they could relate to 4 time British Olympic medallist, swimmer Rebecca
Adlington’s on ‘I’m A Celebrity Get Me out of here’ about her body-image insecurities.  Rebecca Adlington has inspired a generation of young swimmers, but despite her success in the pool she has admitted to feeling very insecure about the way she looks. While appearing on reality TV programme ‘I’m a Celebrity get me out of here’ she was reduced to tears during a conversation about body image. After the conversation, in which model Amy Willerton was asked if she felt like a “piece of meat” for working as a beauty queen, Adlington broke down in tears, saying the idolisation and admiration of attractive people made her “very, very insecure that I have to look a certain way”. She added: “For me, I was an athlete, I wasn’t trying to be a model, but pretty much every single week on Twitter I get somebody commenting on the way I look.” She said: “She’s stick thin, she’s got these push-up bras that make her boobs seem massive. She’s stunning. To me it’s not to do with her as a person. It’s the image she portrays that girls should be stick thin and beautiful.” Adlington has previously been heavily targeted on social media for her looks, with comedian Frankie Boyle joking on television that she “looks pretty weird… like someone who’s looking at themselves in the back of a spoon”.

 

 

Baroness Tanni Grey Thompson

London, UNITED KINGDOM: Britain's paralympian Dame Tanni Grey Thompson holds up her gold medals at a press conference in London as she announces her decision to retire from international competition, 28 February 2007. Grey Thompson holds 15 Paralympic medals including 11 gold medals and has held world records in 200 and 400 metre sprints. AFP PHOTO/CARL DE SOUZA (Photo credit should read CARL DE SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images)

Paralympic multi medallist, Baroness Tanni Grey Thompson used a debate in the House of Lords to express her support of Adlington and fears for the wider world. She said: “This is a young woman that we should all be proud of. She is four-time Olympic swimming medallist but many will understandhow she feels. It is a worrying trend that young women are increasingly put under pressure to conform to a certain way.” The Sports Minister, Helen Grant told BT Sport “There’s far too much focus on what women look like instead of what they can and do achieve in life. Our elite female athletes are among some of the most positive role models that girls can look up to, given their hard work, dedication and performances on the track, in the pool and on the pitch. I want all the support they receive to be geared to them reaching their full potential as athletes.”

 

Part 2 Coming Soon…

 


 

Katie TewBio: My journey into coaching started when I was 10 when I started assisting at the swimming lessons at my club. I progressed too gradually having more responsibility and to having my own group and gaining my qualifications. I am now also an assistant coach with our junior squads and an official. I was selected to attend the Youth Sport Trust National Talent Camp due to my work in coaching and officiating. I hope to share my journey and aspirations as a young coach through this blog.

 

 

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