One place where women’s racing is far more advanced than men’s is its participants’ ability to be their true selves on the bike and off.
Gruber Images, Cor Vos
Here’s a cross I am willing to die on, particularly in this month of Pride: the biggest factor that has contributed to the growth of women’s sport is community. Women’s sport – at risk of it being a misnomer – is for everyone. Women, men, trans folks, queer folks, kids, old people, animals. What unites the group and creates that community is the fact they are there to celebrate strength, poise, and competition. They are there for the love of the game.
When talking about this, I can’t help but recall a conversation I had with a former senior marketing executive at Manchester United Football Club in September last year. They worked across both the men’s and women’s games. It was meant to be just a networking call. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, but I knew that I found the business of women’s sport fascinating. So, quickly the conversation turned from pleasantries to the nitty gritty on what makes women’s sport tick.
To paraphrase, when marketing for the men’s game of soccer, Manchester United would focus on the spectacle – the events around the game, as the spectators would go for the ‘party’. An event with mates. When marketing the women’s games, the team would instead focus on promoting the game itself. The ability of the players. The stories they bring onto the pitch.
The fans are there to be enraptured from start to finish by the ability of these women and the game itself. Alcohol is less prevalent; swearing and anger are low. The game’s focused on community, welcoming individuality that is exemplified by the very players on the pitch.
This anecdote demonstrates the difference between men’s and women’s sport. The former is rooted in a legacy of heteronormativity. Big word, I know. It is a term I will use in this article, so for definition, heteronormativity refers to the belief that heterosexuality is the norm and all individuals are expected to conform to traditional gender roles and relationships. It is a social construct that enforces binary gender categories and limits non-normative (or traditional) desires and behaviours. It is an ideal that percolates through many male-dominated areas and the result is an extremely small number of ‘out’ male athletes.
Women’s sport, meanwhile, isn’t nearly as constrictive.
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