Week 15 - IOC's Gender Policies

Article 15

In class, we discussed the IOC's policies on gender and sex classification.  This article discusses the IOC's  and the International Association of Athletics Federations new policy for dealing with gender differences in sport.  The IOC has stated that these changes were completely unrelated to the fiasco during the world track and field championships in Berlin in 2009, but what happened to Caster Semenya definitely showed that the IOC's policies needed an update.  Sadly, what the IOC came up with is so sexist that it may even be in violation of Title IX, saying that testosterone is an exclusively male hormone.  Former Olympian Bruce Kidd said it best, "How can the I.O.C. and I.A.A.F. claim that they support the full inclusion of women when they reimpose a medical test for their very identity? It’s a huge setback for human rights and the integrity of the Olympic movement.”  
In my opinion, these new set of standards a a major setback in the women's sports movement.  In class, we talked about a lot of things that dealt with women in sports and Feminist movements along with the IOC's policies.  Something like this is a step back for everything that Feminists stand for.  It saddens me to see that we've come so far, and a step back may just halt progress for the time being.

Week 14 - Money and the NFL Lockout

Article 14

One major issue we discussed in class is was money.  What is better to describe the obsession with money than the NFL lockout? I'll tell you....Absolutely nothing.  A few years back the NHL lockout occurred, but was resolved a few weeks into the season.  Now, we're faced with another set of athletes and owners who can't come to a simple agreement.  "Although Judge Nelson has ordered both sides to negotiate, that does not mean that they must settle. At this point, it would require major concessions on either side for a new deal to get done, which seems unlikely to happen. It would appear that both sides would like to await the judge's ruling before returning to any serious negotiations."  With the draft coming up, players and fans alike are anxious to see if a decision can be made regarding pay and amenities for NFL players.  It makes me sad to see that, in the long run, these players will still be making more than the average American and they can't come to an agreement.
But again I say, "It's all about the money, honey."  In my opinion, these athletes and owners are getting paid too much as it is. Why can't they come to a simple agreement on salaries that are already far surpassing what they should be making in the world's economy.  These athletes aren't even taking into account the millions of dollars that they make in endorsement deals every year.  I just really want to see if they can come to a consensus before the season was supposed to start.

Week 13-Women in the Boston Marathon

Article 13

Not surprisingly, I chose another article dealing with women in sport.  April 18th is the 115th running of the Boston Marathon and three American women and four International women have been named possible front-runners for the race.  These women have taken marathon racing to their heart and have the same kind of dedication and talent as the men do.  No woman has won the marathon since 1985, but isn't stopping these lovely ladies from trying.  Women's front-runners include: Kara Goucher, Desiree Davila, Blake Russell, Dire Tune, Teyba Erkesso, Kim Smith, and Catherine Ndereba.

Update 4/18/2011: None of these women actually won the women's race.  Kenyan Catherine Kilel finished with a time of 2 hours and 22 minutes.  Desiree Davila, of the United States, followed with a close second.  

Week 12 - Gays in the NFL

Article 12

"Gay and lesbian couples want to marry for similar reasons as we all do: love and commitment.  It's time to allow them the opportunity to build a family though marriage. It's a matter of fairness." - Brendon Ayanbadejo

Just three short sentences have caused an uproar in millions of fans of the Baltimore Ravens and many others. Just one video caused social media platforms to erupt with speculation of the NFL linebackers sexuality.  While attitudes are changing, that change has not been felt in the locker room in American professional sports, including in the NFL. Fujita said that more NFL players might be as accepting as he and Ayanbadejo, but reporters who cover sports rarely venture beyond asking questions about the game.  It seems hard for me to believe that an openly gay NFL player would be accepted by teammates, even in the 21st century, but some people think it would be okay.  "It would be tough for a gay person just to feel comfortable in the locker room about coming out, because there are so many jokes," said Jets running back LaDainian Tomlinson. "But maybe there will be one, one day, someone who's brave enough to do so. If someone could deal with that and say, 'You know I don't care, I'm here to play football, this is my own deal,' then more power to them."

In class we discussed things like the Queer Theory and the Queer of Color Theory, where people who are different than the social "norm" are considered to be deviant.  If there were people who were be openly gay in  pro sports, the idea that athletes are the most masculine men would be questioned and, in turn, athleticism would be questioned.  I hope that more people like Jet RB Tomlinson make it public how they feel and more players would be able to share with the world how they really feel. 

Week 11 - Fibbing the Facts

Article 11

In class we discussed the creation and effects of Title IX.  Everything from my participation in sport to the inclusion of many women's sports into the Olympics and other championships has been based on the creation of this important and historical documentation.  "Title IX was passed in 1972 to give women and girls equal opportunity in federally financed education programs, including high school and collegiate athletics. Schools are now legally required to provide roster spots to males and females in proportion to their representation in the student body. As a result, female participation in sports has increased tenfold in high schools and by six times at the college level."  In this article, UCONN coach Gene Auriemma discusses his thoughts on how schools are altering their participation numbers to stay in accordance with Title IX.

Many schools, like University of South Florida, have taken to bending the rules to stay in accordance with the mandatory legislation.  According to the New York Times, "With the addition of football in 1997, USF no longer was in compliance with Title IX. Shortly thereafter, the school reported a massive increase in the members of its women's cross country team: from 21 in 2002 to 75 in 2008. The 2009 team reportedly had 71 members, but fewer than half of those listed actually ran a race that year."  Other schools were reportedly finding loopholes in the document, including Texas A&M and Duke, who both had male practice players listed as females.  While schools, including Cornell, have listed females as practice players on men's teams to allow for more male roster spots.  "There has been praise for the role Title IX has played in the growth of women's sports, but there has also been a backlash by those who believe that men's sports have suffered. Now it appears that many schools are willing to fib on the facts -- to break the law -- in order to open up more roster spots for men."  How disappointing.

Week 10 - Role Model or Felon?

Article 10

According to Wikipedia, Floyd Mayweather is an American professional boxer. He is a five-division world champion, where he won nine world titles in five different boxing weight classes. He is undefeated as a professional boxer, with 41 wins including 25 by way of knockout.  According to this article, Mayweather is accused of hitting and threatening his ex-girlfriend, stealing her cell phone and threatening two of their children during an argument at the woman's home last September. His lawyers deny wrongdoing on his behalf. Mayweather could face 34 years in state prison on the felony charges, which include grand larceny, coercion and robbery.  Big difference in descriptions..

In class, we touched on the expectation of professional athletes to be role models for our children.  Obviously, someone like Mayweather is not acting in a manner that we would like our children to mimic.  The question remains: Are pro athletes role models?  In my opinion, yes.  Some people say that the signed up to play sports, not to be a role model, but I believe that if you chose to put yourself in the spot light, you are signing up for a lot more than the sports team, or label you are representing.  There's no reason why anyone should be held to a higher standard in other aspects of their life if they aren't going to fulfill that standard in all aspects.  If a normal person were to be charged with these offenses, they would be in jail already, not being granted an extension until their hearing date.  To me, that's unfair, and isn't the way it should work.  

Week 9 - A League of their Own

Article 9

In week 2, I discussed Justine Siegal's contributions to the MLB.  This week I found another article dealing with women in the pro baseball circuit.  Retired MLB player David Segui attended a youth tournament in Las Vegas, where he was impressed by what he saw.  The squad he watched is made up of the country's best U-13 female players, each of whom was once the only girl on her team. The Dream Team currently has players from five different states. In addition to baseball, they play everything from ice hockey and soccer to mandolin and viola.  Seigal, whom I mentioned was the first women to pitch an MLB batting practice, created the Dream Team with her program Justine Siegal's Baseball for All.  

Justine's accomplishments, as well as the efforts of all the young girls who continue to fight for what they think is right.  If a girl can hold her against all the boys, why shouldn't she be able to compete with them?  That's the question that has yet to be answered by Feminist theorists alike.

Week 8 - Inadequate Seating at Superbowl

Article 8

It's all about the money, honey.  When seats weren't ready for Superbowl attendees, the NFL has made offer, upon offer to reimburse the owners of the tickets.  With an impending NFL lockout on the horizon, author Jane McManus thinks that the NFL will need a certain amount of public support on their side, and after something like what happened at the Super Bowl, that is highly unlikely.  

"If the NFL is going to lock out the players, it needs to have some amount of public sentiment on its side, and it won't get that by looking like a group of arrogant owners who can't address the simplest of unfair situations.  Like a ticket that didn't come with a seat.  The average NFL fan may not be able to identify with wealthy professional athletes in Gucci sunglasses squawking about fair pay, but she can most certainly relate to a Packers fan who gets unceremoniously kicked out of a seat during a once-in-a-lifetime trip to see Aaron Rodgers make Green Bay proud."

Needless to say, none of that happened and it didn't take long for a lawsuit to arise.  The NFL has built itself up in the sports landscape to look like "clear-headed grownups" when compared with the NBA, MLB and NHL. A lockout will harm that. But more importantly, the NFL needs to appear to be a league that is fair and reasonable, whether it is dealing with players or displaced fans.  The NFL has "dealt with the ticket holders by being reactionary in dealing with complaints and lawsuits, when a little foresight and a fair offer could have alleviated a public relations disaster."  The stakes are obviously higher in the case of a lockout.   So once again, I say, "It's all about the money, honey." 

Week 7 - Are Helmets a Bad Thing?

Article 7

Very similar to last week's post, this week deals with the use of helmets in women's lacrosse.  Although in men's lacrosse of all stages players are required to wear a helmet, for women it is the exact opposite.  Players, besides goalies, have been banned from wearing helmets and face guards to deter from more physical play.  While it is a proven fact that helmets seem to foster more aggressive behavior, it is hard to see why players aren't allowed to wear helmets at all.  I feel like this should be changed in some way.  If we can do anything to prevent concussive blows in sports like lacrosse and hockey, I think we should.  
Violence and deviance in sport is something that had always been taken in stride, depending on the sport itself.  With things like hockey, rugby, football, and lacrosse, it is expected that players are tough and can take hard shots.  Where do we draw the line?  Just recently, direct contact with the head in football has been banned, but it's still allowed on the ice.  What makes these two things different when both can cause serious brain damage?  In my opinion, nothing.  When there are players dying and receiving serious injuries from checks and hard hits, I think we should be doing everything we can to prevent it, even if that means we let girls wear helmets.

Week 6 - Protecting NHL Players

Article 6

In class, we discussed the consequences of professional leagues rules for hard hits and things of that nature.  In my KIN 140 class we also discussed the consequences of concussions and how many NHL and NFL players are severely brain damaged because of direct hits.  This article from ESPNw discusses how the NHL should better protect its players from head injury and brain damage.  In 1968, pro hockey player Bill Masterson was killed by a check, and it took the NHL 11 years to require helmets to be worn on the ice.  This year alone, 98 players were confirmed with concussions, and that doesn't count all the head injuries that went undiagnosed.  I just hope that it doesn't take another death for the NHL to see that they should ban head shots altogether. 
In class, we discussed things like violence in sports and deviance.  In sports like hockey it seems as if head shots and hard checks are just a part of the game, but in reality, they are serious infractions, and can get an athlete into a lot of trouble.  Sometimes coaches and owners turn a blind eye to such deviant behavior because it is what makes the fans happy, but that really needs to stop. Even when a player is required to wear helmets and excessive padding, they are still at risk of serious injury, which should 

Week 5 - I Won't Wrestle a Girl

Article 5

In the Iowa state wrestling meet, wrestler Joel Northrup decided to default instead of wrestling female opponent Cassy Herkleman, one of only two females who qualified for the state tournament.  Joel issued a statement saying that "As a matter of conscience and my faith I do not believe that it is appropriate for a boy to engage a girl in this manner. It is unfortunate that I have been placed in a situation not seen in most other high school sports in Iowa."  This article makes me sad and angry all at the same time.  I understand and see that some people's religions have strict rules about how to treat women, but I don't agree.  Cassy earned to right to be in the state meet and was obviously good enough to compete.  Instead she moved ahead in the competition by default and didn't get to prove to herself and everyone else that she was good enough.  Cassy released a statement saying that she respected Joel for sticking to his beliefs, something that she said would be hard for a 15- or 16-year old boy to do.  Still, even after her acceptance of his default, I can't seem to kick the feeling that Cassy was hurt by his refusal to wrestle her.  I know I would've been.  It denial makes it as if the female gender is weaker and needs protecting, something I fully disagree with.

Week 4 - Hot Broadcasting Babes

Article 4

It took me a while to find an article for this week.  While browsing SportsFixChicago.com, I decided to pick the first article that I found dedicated to women in sports.  Needless to say, I had to browse all the way back to November of 2010 to find anything remotely dedicated to women, and the article that I did find was only about the Top 10 Hottest Female Broadcasters of All-Time.  Of course.   No where did I find anything about the talents of female athletes, only pictures of Erin Andrews and Colleen Dominguez, #2 and #1 respectively on this list.  Once again, this article shows how completely demeaning that men can be in relation to women in sports. complete with pictures and demeaning descriptions of the women who were lucky enough to make such a list.  Websites like SFC just show that men are the athletes and women are supposed to be feminine and pretty all the time.  Not once while scrolling through hundreds of articles on this website did I find anything dedicated to celebrating the talents or obstacles of female athletes today, and this clearly proves many things that we discussed in class to be true.   Don't fret, SFC also published a list of Top Ten Hottest Female Athletes of All Time.  That counts as print time for women athletes...doesn't it?

Week 3 - UCONN Women at #1

Article 3

Not surprisingly, the UCONN women's basketball team is back at #1.  Head coach Gene Auriemma said it best when he discussed the issue of his record breaking women's team: ""If we were breaking a women's record, everybody would go, "Aren't those girls nice, let's give them two paragraphs in USA Today, you know, give them one line on the bottom of ESPN and then let's send them back where they belong, in the kitchen'...the reason everybody is having a heart attack...is a bunch of women are threatening to break a men's record, and everybody is all up in arms about it."   Well said, Gene.  The truth behind this statement reigns clear when we see the kind of coverage that women's sports get on channels like ESPN and in major newspapers.  What I found interesting wasn't so much the content of the article, but the fact that this was the only ESPN headliner on this particular day that had to do with women.  The article discusses the UCONN women's team and how they managed to maintain their #1 ranking in the Associated Press poll, just above Stanford.  In class, we discussed the amount of women's sports in the media and how, even though women's participation in sports has increased, the amount of air and print time that females recieve has actually decreased.  The fact that this was the only article on ESPN dealing with women clearly shows that.

Week 2- Justine Siegal

Article Two

This week we started discussing gender roles and how the big three sports are dominated by men.  From the beginnings of sport, athletes have been seen as masculine beings and women's entrance into sports was always frowned upon.  Comparing the abilities of men and women was a threat to man's superiority.   On February 21, 2011, Justine Siegal broke an MLB barrier when she became the first woman to pitch batting practice in a major league spring training camp.  This article states that Siegal has broken barriers in baseball prior to her training camp experiences, including coaching first base in men's professional baseball for the Brockton Rox in 2009.  She spent three years as the only female college baseball coach in the country, when she was an assistant at Springfield College from 2007-2010.  Manager Manny Acta, whom also pitches for the Cleveland Indians, even went as far as saying that she made him look bad.  This is just one step in one sport closer to what pro sports should be in the future.

Week 1- ESPN Texas

Article 1

At first, this article caught my eye because of the title's use of the word microcosm.  Having never heard that word before class, I was intrigued.  After reading the article I realized that it had a lot more to do with the overwhelming addiction that people in the United States, and all over the world for that matter, have with sports.  It argues about how funding and things like recruiting affects college sports.  How are smaller or less funded schools like Iowa supposed to compete with schools who can afford a 300 million dollar television network?  With the creation of a branch of ESPN specifically for a Texas audience, we can see how important sports are in the United States. Even with channels like ESPN, people are constantly looking for excuses to keep up on the happenings in the world of sport.  Since the creation of ESPN in 1979, there have been 23 more channels in the ESPN family of networks, not counting the new addition of ESPN Texas, the ESPN radio channels, or it's wide array of websites.  It's not hard to see how important sports are to our culture in the United States.  Sports are a social phenomena.  They connect people that would never relate to each other in any other way.  They are a huge part of our society and helped to shape our culture into what it is today.