Disturbing the cavemen with great women of history
#8: Inspirational women on International Women’s Day: Olympic and Paralympic champions, forgotten pioneers, resilient refs, tenacious mechanics, desert runners, and more than one cave dweller...
Tales from the fringes of sport and society…
There’s a book that has been a favourite bedtime read in my house since I bought it some years ago. Women in Sport: 50 Fearless Athletes Who Played To Win is a beautifully illustrated collection of stories about history’s greatest sportswomen.
My daughters are gripped by the achievements portrayed. Some stories, like those of martial artist Keiko Fukuda, figure skater Madge Syers, and distance swimmer Gertrude Ederle, are new to me and unknown to many. Others feature more recent legends like Katherine Grainger, Simone Biles, and Serena Williams, whose tales I bring further to life with the help of YouTube.
But there’s an uncomfortable dichotomy I wrestle with when reading these stories. The narrative for many of these women depicts success in the face of entrenched adversity that is, at least for now, alien to my audience; aged 9 and 6. It means that instead of prompting inspiration, the tales can serve to introduce unease.
When I tell them that Fukuda was for decades not allowed to achieve sixth-dan black belt like her male equivalents, they look at me perplexed. When I read that Syers couldn’t skate competitively because it was deemed too “stressful” for women’s “weak” bodies, they laugh at what they assume is a joke. When I explain that Ederle overcame the sneers to become the first woman to swim the Channel in 1926, they don’t cheer in awe. To them, there is no doubt that she could, or would.
And so when I close the book, with my girls drifting off to sleep wondering what sort of barmy world we used to live in, I’m almost comforted with the thought that these prejudices and obstacles seem so peculiar to them.
Almost comforted.
Because that’s the preset ignorance of a 39-year-old white man.
“Check your privilege” might be dismissed by some as a woke catchphrase, but as I steel myself for the challenges ahead with my eldest approaching middle school, I find it a useful exercise. If my daughters are yet to recognise a world moulded by the patriarchy, I know that it’s only a matter of time before it bops them on the chin like a Nicola Adams uppercut.
Sport is as good a place to start as any, as a mirror on society that reflects both its merits and its ills. And the history books show that it has not always been a welcoming world for women.
At the first Olympic Games in Ancient Greece, females were not only forbidden from competing; married women would be executed if they dared to attend. Even Pierre De Courbetin’s first modern Games in 1896, while espousing the Olympic values of tolerance and understanding, banned women participants because it would be "impractical, uninteresting, unaesthetic, and incorrect."
It's common knowledge that the FA effectively put a halt to women's football in 1921 when they prevented them from playing in professional stadiums, because “the game of football is quite unsuitable for females and ought not to be encouraged.”
But while we can be encouraged by the recent growth of women’s football (which has given birth to a new generation of resilient heroes) or the IOC’s moves to modernise the Olympics (Paris 2024 will see full gender parity for the first time in history), then we should also take heed of areas that remain rooted in a medieval mindset.
In Iran, women are finally permitted to attend some football matches but tickets remain limited and seats restricted to where they will not be seen on TV. The policy change has come at a cost to those petitioning the government. In 2019, faced with six months in prison for trying to gain entry to a match, Sahar Khodayari died after setting herself on fire outside a Tehran court.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s female cricketers remain in exile after the Taliban regained control of the country. The men’s team have no such concern, earning plaudits for their gutsy performances at last year’s World Cup.
But before pointing fingers over the pond, it’s worth addressing the cracks in our own backyard. Anti-discrimination organisation Kick It Out has reported a rise in sexism in English football, with a posse of angry white blokes filling an EU-shaped hole by blaming the UK’s malaise on female pundits and commentators.
Sport, as ever, is simply reflecting trends elsewhere. But perhaps most troubling is that these incidents can’t only be attributed to old men shouting at clouds.
A recent survey found that one in six men aged 16-29 believe feminism has done more harm than good, and a fifth of the same demographic look favourably on Andrew Tate, the social media influencer and proud misogynist who is being held in Romania on charges of human trafficking and rape.
So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that female teachers have noted a surge in sexist abuse in schools. On our TV screens, GB News breached broadcasting rules following Laurence Fox’s comments about journalist Ava Evans, which Ofcom ruled were “degrading and demeaning both to Ms Evans and women generally and were clearly and unambiguously misogynistic".
And let’s not forget Donald Trump is the favourite to be elected as US President later this year. His feminist credentials needn’t be repeated.
Privilege duly checked, that naive comfort I felt as my kids dozed off is well and truly obliterated. Instead, I consider the very distinct possibility that in 20 years I could be reading an updated version of Women in Sport to my grandkids, recounting examples of how today’s women were still forced to swim against a tide of bile.
Or maybe, just maybe, our frothing 21st-century cavemen will emerge from their dim pit of ignorance, see the light, and help to create a world where women needn’t defend their role on a football show, or their attendance in a stadium, or their worth on a cricket pitch.
But let’s not hold our breath.
On International Women’s Day, this month's Off-Field newsletter is dedicated to stories of inspirational women. There are Olympic and Paralympic champions, forgotten sporting pioneers, football referees, an F1 mechanic, a desert runner, and a woman who spent 500 days in a cave. Enjoy the selection.
Self-Discovery in the Sand
When I first contacted Cath Wallis in the hope that she might share her story, she politely admitted to being in no rush to work with a British journalist again. It transpired that she’d had an uncomfortable experience with the Daily Mail, who’d promised to treat Cath’s story with the respect it deserved before - hold the phone - failing to live up to their word.
Although the Mail’s article is still online, I have no intention of linking to it. Instead, why not check out the article we came up with together when I gained Cath’s trust. The Australian ultra-endurance athlete has completed some of the world’s most iconic foot races, proudly from the back of the field. She’s not out to break records, but to shatter perceptions.
Parc Fermé: The Female Mechanic Who Smashed F1’s Glass Ceiling
It’s been a tricky start to the season for Formula 1. Not only does it look like the yawning chasm between Max Verstappen and the rest of the field is set to repeat itself for another tedious season, but scandals off the grid are threatening to damage a brand that has been carefully cultivated.
The charade over Christian Horner’s personal life is also a timely reminder that on the few occasions that women do make headlines in the sport, it is rarely anything to do with success on the track.
If F1 has long been seen as an old boys’ club, then it’s a reputation that is largely deserved. For many years, it’s been rare for any girl to see the sport as an attractive career option. But occasionally someone comes along prepared for the battle that awaits.
Like Emilie Rath, whose ten-year journey to the F1 pit lane is documented in this episode of Unsung. Discover how she did it, who she upset along the way, and why she found it wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.
An Olympic Champion Goes in Search of a New Identity
In January, surfing champion Carissa Moore announced that she would be stepping away from the sport after defending her Olympic title this summer. At just 31 years old, the five-time world champion follows in the footsteps of Serena Williams, Ashleigh Barty, and Allyson Felix in pausing at the peak of her powers to start a family.
Of course, it's the sort of decision that no male athlete ever needs to make, which is exactly why this delicately-written New York Times piece is required reading to better understand the physical sacrifices and psychological quandaries involved in putting a career on hold.
“There is no single path for those who have been defined so singularly, who become the best at something, famously, and then walk away from it in their prime. When most top athletes retire, the discussion is in the past tense, an assessment of accomplishments and legacies. For Moore, this is about what she wants, not what she did. It is about the eternal, universal search for something more — more challenges, more unknowns, more meaning.”
A Moment That Changed Me: Outraged at the Glass Ceiling, I Became a Gold-Medal-Winning Athlete
Danielle Brown vividly remembers the day she learned of the glass ceiling. She was in sixth form, and her blood went cold. As someone who couldn’t walk unaided, she felt like she already had enough barriers to surmount. “Why should my gender define my future?” she asked.
Here she offers a revealing first-person account of how she went on to claim Paralympic gold medals in archery, before becoming the first disabled athlete to represent England – and win gold – in an able-bodied discipline at the Commonwealth Games.
Copa 71
Just under two million fans were in attendance at the FIFA Women's World Cup last summer, while in the UK an estimated peak of 14.8 million watched the final on TV. The women's game is undoubtedly thriving, but a new documentary reminds us that it could and should be a whole lot further along in its evolution.
Twenty years before FIFA's first Women's World Cup in 1991, an unofficial tournament in Mexico was played in front of 100,000 capacity crowds at the iconic Azteca stadium. Produced by Serena and Venus Williams and US soccer star Alex Morgan, this is the story of the women who played in that forgotten competition. Watch the trailer below and look out for it in local cinemas from this weekend.
The Woman Who Spent Five Hundred Days in a Cave
On 20th November 2021, Spaniard Beatriz Flamini descended into a cave in the mountains north of Motril, a town overlooking the Andalusian coast. She wouldn't re-emerge until April 14th 2023, some 510 days later. “I wanted total disconnection,” she said, in a tale that demonstrates humanity’s innate resilience and survival instincts. This, from D. T. Max of The New Yorker, is an engrossing write-up of Beatriz's adventure, and ordeal.
I’ve Never Understood Why Anyone Would Want to Be a Referee. Now I Do
Suzy Wrack is a formidable journalist whose work seems to feature almost every month in this newsletter. This account of her trip to a referees’ training camp comes at a timely moment, a couple of months after Rebecca Welch became the first woman to officiate a Premier League game. Wrack begins the piece with the thought “why would somebody put themselves through that?”, and after a day in the company of passionate and dedicated refs, gets a little closer to an answer.
Good for a Girl, Lauren Fleshman
“There is something wrong with our sports systems, and deep down we know it. The sports environments we fought so hard to have equal access to were built by men, for men and boys. Our definition of gender equality has been "getting what men have, the way they have it," and it's backfiring. We fold and smash women and girls into a male-based infrastructure, and then scratch our heads when the same friction points show up again and again.”
Lauren Fleshman is an American runner and coach of some repute, but her debut book, the deserved winner of the 2023 William Hill Sports Book of the Year, could very well represent her greatest impact on sport. Especially if, as it should, it becomes a go-to tome for anyone involved in women’s sports.
Fleshman pulls no punches about her experience as a young female athlete navigating the confusing and turbulent waters that typify puberty and menstruation, and her father's well-meaning but flawed attempts to help is a useful barometer for any 'girl dad' who might feel similarly lost at sea when that time arrives.
Fleshman's views on sport's broken structures also serve as a much-needed manifesto for the future. For coaches all over the world, both grassroots and elite, it is a must-read.
Thanks for reading March’s edition of Off-Field. If you know of anyone who might like any of this month’s picks, why not forward them this newsletter or hit the share button below.
If there’s anything you read, listen to, or watch over the next month that you’d like to recommend for a future edition, do let me know via alexisnjames@gmail.com.