I've been watching the Commonwealth Games over the last few days and one thing thats struck me is how odd competitive gymnastics is, particularly the bizarre discrepancies between competitors. Firstly: the outfits. The women are dressed in super-shiny tight leotards that barely cover their behinds, which is apparently "to enable the judges to see proper form" - yet despite this the men wear comparatively loose trousers covering their plain leotards. So clearly its nothing to do with being able to see the gymnasts limbs! Compare this to this. There is just no comparison. Secondly: the events. There are some events women are excluded from despite probably being perfectly capable (pommel horse, rings) - if women can breakdance they would certainly have enough upper body strength for these. One of the most striking differences though is the Floor. Men's floor is pretty much just a display of tumbles, no music, just gymnastics. Women's floor on the other hand has to be set to music and include dance elements (lord knows why!). From watching these dance elements seem to involve writhing around on the floor, arching the back - moves which wouldn't be out of place in an exotic dance show. Not that theres anything wrong with that, but it seems incredibly odd that the men are judged solely for their gymnastics yet women have to bring sultry moves to the table! The whole affair seems to be one big exercise in gender norms, restrictive for both sides. Men must cover up, play it macho, show power and definitely not dance as its too girly; women must strip off, be as feminine as possible and move in a delicate way, no brute power allowed.
I agree. You've summed that up very well I think. i don't know why it's classed as the same sport for both genders. Even IF most current women wouldn't be strong enough for "male" gymnastics, plenty would be or would become those types of gymnast...i mean there are plenty of women weightlifters and other strength sports. and there is literally no reason for floor to not be the same - whichever way round you look at it... I think it comes from previous stereotypes and gender norms, and it's just stuck...annoyingly.
Well I think the women might have to train separately (i.e. a female gymnast solely competing on the strength based events like the rings/pommel horse, and others competing on the beam/floor) but its certainly achievable. If women can lift their entire body weight in handbalances, lift double their weight in weightlifting and compete in events like the uneven bars its a bit silly to say "women don't have the upper body strength required". I'm sure there are plenty of women out there stronger even than male gymnasts. Yeh, perhaps one of the reasons rhythmic gymnastics is a women's only event - it would probably be seen as "too gay" for a man to twirl a hoop or ribbon around. :rolle: What an insecure lot we are! Sigh.
I agree, I don't get why girls can't compete on the pommel horse. I know quite a few girls who can do flares better than I can so girls should be able to compete. I think this is another hoop boys and girls have to jump through to attain equality. High school sports teams have always excluded women from joining. Now, we see girl's basketball and softball teams. Rhythmic gymnastics is "only for girls" even though I've seen many guys on winterguard teams dancing better...
I think I had this exact same conversation with my sister when watching the Commonwealth all-around finals last week... About the outfits, the ridiculous prancing around in the women's floor routines, and the differences in events (works the other way too - why don't men do the Beam, for instance?) I also get a bit weirded out by the way in which the women are made to appear like little girls (scrunchies and glitter etc), yet simultaneously they are presented to us in extremely revealing outfits, doing 'alluring' dancemoves. And some of them actually really are still children (it's not unusual for the girls to be in the 14 to 16 age bracket) and that just makes it all seem even more uncomfortable. I generally find that there's something very unsettling about the way that female gymnasts are presented. Maybe it's just me though... I love watching gymnastics. I'm completely in awe of the things that they can do, both men and women. But I do think that some aspects of it are horribly outdated and should undergo revisions. Can't imagine these things will ever change though...sports do like to cling onto their traditions!
It's weird how I never thought about that sport being sexist until you brought it up. I don't really like the women's outfits. They always come across to me as passively sexualizing them. To see them in their proper form? Please, and you want me to believe that rubbish? Also, with what Pax mentioned, some of these girls fall in the 14-16 age range. So, that's just creepy on so many levels.
If you look at how precise male ballet dancers move, I think men could certainly master the beam. They might have to have a slightly wider beam (to accommodate bigger feet) and some changes to rules (I understand men cannot do certain flips), but if other gymnastic events (like the floor) are so radically different between sexes I think changing the beam event slightly would be a minor thing. Its not just you. It is incredibly strange, they are dressed up almost like dolls. Its as if they are wearing outfits they would have chosen as 7 year olds. All the pink shiny lycra, glitter, scrunchies. And then you have them performing (intentionally or not) very sexualized and suggestive movements (swaying their hips, gyrating, shaking their bottoms, arching their backs to the extreme). Moves that would be standard for belly dancers, pole dancers and strippers. There is nothing inherently wrong with exotic dance, but its all to do with the context. When they are dressed as sexualized children and competing in a sporting event it all becomes very odd and uncomfortable. Gymnastics is certainly impressive, particularly the beam and bar events, they must require some guts! But it does make me scratch my head with the bizarre rules and regulations.
