MEN V WOMEN IN SPORT?

Tradition. Society. Culture. Physiology. Anatomy. All key aspects that come in to play when debating whether men and women will ever truly be viewed equally in sport.

Sport being 'an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team compete against another or others for entertainment' dates back to at least 3,000 years, with the first documented formal event being the Olympic games in 776BC. However female sports were not introduced in a formal fashion until the twentieth century. I found it to be utterly shocking that it had taken this much time for women to be taken serious in the world of sport. I wanted to delve deeper and curate a brief understanding on whether this is due to the physical nature of many sports or is gender equality the root of the issue.

What really caught my attention was the lack of sports where men and women compete against each other. Why do most sports have to be separated into men versus men and women versus women? Is this dichotomy due to anatomical and physiological issues, tradition or simply an unbalanced gender interest in the sport? From a very basic viewpoint, I understand that in terms of anatomy men can attain greater muscle mass, strength and endurance, therefore pitting men and women against each other in various sports would be deemed unfair.

This got me thinking that the physicality argument is not valid for ALL sports. In motorsport men and women can compete in the same event/series with no physical advantages or disadvantages, yet the sport is hugely male dominated. Focussing on some of the most popular motorsport series in the world such as F1, Nascar, Moto GP, IndyCar, there is a serious lack of women representation yet women are allowed to compete against men.

Is this due to tradition and history? Inequality and prejudice?

Without getting too historical, prior to the enlightenment era, in western society women were not considered as equal status to men in any sense. The gender role of a woman was to be the primary caregiver for her family and to possess angelic qualities such as being docile, good tempered, gentle etc. Although, with the enlightenment era, suffragette movement, rise of feminism and this overall fight against women oppression and gender norms, it is apparent that these stereotypes are still very much present in modern society. A sport so dangerous, such as motor racing, is regarded as distinctly 'unladylike' still to this day. In my opinion history and inequality coexist to play a role in the absence of women in motorsport.

Is it lack of interest?

In my observation through karting at different tracks (not competing), there was and is always an absence of females. Then, in terms of my family and close circle of female friends, very few have an interest in any motorsport series and I only really converse with my male friends about motorsport. In my personal experience, I conclude that overall there tends to be a lack of interest in the sport by women.

Statistics show that there is a significant difference between male and female participation at junior levels of karting with the number of young women competing globally approximately only being in the hundreds. This creates a greater challenge for women to enter the most popular motorsport series, such as F1, which only enables 20 of the greatest talent, across the globe, the chance to compete. Is the competition too strong for more females to breakthrough?

The rise of women in motorsport

In better news, there has been an increase in women participation across the last few years with an active movement attracting more women to the sport.

· Girls on Track UK programme

This programme is a joint initiative between the FIA and Motorsport UK combined with Susie Wolff’s ‘Dare to be Different’ initiative. The programme offers young women an opportunity to participate in events, giving them an insight into the various roles in the industry.

· Dare to be Different campaign

A campaign started by British racing driver Susie Wolff in order to drive female talent.

“An ambitious and long-term project that will build an online community of women from all over the world” – Susie Wolff.

· W Series

A Women’s only racing series with an ambition to change the face of motorsport. This series has now joined the 2021 F1 season onto the sport’s support bill at eight of the Grand Prix weekends.

· Formula Woman

A motor racing competition where women of all ages, races and backgrounds compete for the chance to become a racing driver.

The list above is a very small handful of how the motorsport industry is actively trying to change the perception of being a male dominated sport and highlights the importance of fighting for equality in each and every role. It will be great to see more men versus women racing.