Curiouser and Curiouser: Sexed Up Olympics

Curiouser and curiouser; the hit'o'meter is still spinning courtesy of Sweden. I have not heard from anyone in Sweden with any sort of explanation as to why they suddenly love me there, so, I will ask again:

Om du är en av mina vänliga läsare från Sverige, berätta för mig: varför är jag så populär där? Jag hoppas att det inte har något att göra med det svenska kvinnofotbollslaget. Det var ett mycket spännande spel ... och ja, jag såg det.

That was a serious question. If you happen to know the answer, please share. I am truly curious.

Caeleb Dressel

Now, on to more important topics. About the Olympics: I confess, I've been watching some of it. Mostly as background noise while I do other things, but I did catch the 4x100 meter swimming relay. Women of a certain age might want to refrain from seeing those boys in their long-leg speedos.  Hubba! Hubba! (Cut me some slack here...I'm a widow and they're wearing bathing suits!) At least the teeny-tiny speedos are gone...at least until diving starts, and then, there's a different discussion to have. I imagine women all over the world are enjoying the view. Still, the men's uniforms are not nearly as overtly sexual as the women's togs.....think beach volleyball,

I also watched women's beach volleyball and there is no way in hell you will ever convince me those bottoms are comfortable after one slide in the sand. However, an interview with The Huffington Post Kerri Walsh Jennings said this is what the women want to wear:

When it comes to beach volleyball, we’re playing in 100-degree-plus weather. I think we’ve just gotta educate the public, take it with a grain of salt and make sure that we’re working hard and not playing up the sex appeal because it’s inherent anyway. 

Egyptian team

According to the ICO, bikinis are not required. The Egyptian team covers up in accordance with Muslim tradition, but they manage to play. The choice of attire is up to the team. At least in beach volleyball. Various accommodations have been made for religious modesty and that's as it should be.

Norwegian team

But when the Norwegian Beach Handball team refused to wear bikini bottoms, they were fined by the IOC. Singer Pink stepped up and offered to pay the whole fine. Meanwhile, If you want an explanation that defies all understanding, you can read the rules at Olympics kit rules: Why beach volleyball bikinis have to be small, and other Tokyo 2020 restrictions

The men's team, however, manages to play in tank tops and shorts just fine. They used to play shirtless until the IOC said they had to wear shirts so individual team numbers were visible. Makes sense to me. These guys are all poster guys for body-beautiful, but they're not flaunting their 8-pack abs all over the sand. (Then again, shirtless men are perfectly acceptable, right? Men have always gone shirtless on the beach and women haver generally covered up. Is that the way it should be? Probably not. Women should go topless if they want. But this is not a conversation about convention; it's about sexuality in what is for all intents and purposes, the workplace.)

So what's the allure of playing in skimpy clothing at all? Sand in a bikini bottom is horrible. Why would you want to slide on the sand in that? Why not, ladies of volleyball, just paint your numbers on your back and play naked? Wouldn't that be most comfortable? But that's just not done.

I am not the only one concerned about the sexualization of Olympic attire. The German gymnastics team has put their collective feet down on the matter, and are refusing to wear the bikini cut leotards. Instead they are wearing full body unitards. From The Washington Post

Germany’s female gymnasts stood out from other Tokyo Olympics competitors Sunday during a team qualifying round by wearing unitards, rather than traditional leotards. They first wore the bodysuits in competition during the European championships in April, when the German Gymnastics Federation said the choice of apparel was meant to counteract “sexualization” in the sport.

Sarah Voss, one of the team members, in a interview with the BBC in April said:

We women all want to feel good in our skin. In the sport of gymnastics it gets harder and harder as you grow out of your child’s body. As a little girl I didn’t see the tight gym outfits as such a big deal. But when puberty began, when my period came, I began feeling increasingly uncomfortable.

What a remarkable thing to say! I applaud her for coming out to recognize that this the difference in girl v. women's bodies. After that debacle of Dr. Nasser and the sexual abuse and exploitation of the USA gymnastics program, maybe it's time to examine the messages we send when we send out women athletes into the arena in little more than a strip of coverage? Since the day Sonje Henie started wearing short skirts to complete back at the 1928 Olympics, the move toward less and less coverage is really easy to follow. Some of it makes perfect sense, other trends, less so.

Isn't it enough that our women athletes perform feats of strength, agility, and daring without adding the artifice of sexual appeal? They are amazing in their own bodies. Do they really need eyelash extension to improve their performance? Are the people that stuff them into these revealing costumes really trying to tell them their grace and endurance are not enough? That their bodies have to be exposed, flaunted, and ogled by the crowds?

For a long time I have railed against overly provocative clothes not because they are shameful or sinful or any bullshit like that. But because I wonder what we are telling the wearers, especially young women, about their self-worth. 

Remember A CHORUS LINE? There's a great song called Dance: Ten; Looks: Three:

Dance: ten; Looks; three.

And I'm still on unemployment,

Dancing for my own enjoyment.

That ain't it, kid. That ain't it, kid.

"Dance: ten; Looks; three, "

Is like to die!

Left the theatre and

Called the doctor for

My appointment to buy...

Tits and ass.

Bought myself a fancy pair.

Tightened up the derriere.

Did the nose with it.

All that goes with it.

The entertainment industry is not women's athletics. Apples and oranges. Kerri Walsh Jennings is not auditioning for a part. Sure, she and all the other women of Team USA are entitled to wear whatever makes them comfortable in the arena that fit the guidelines handed out by the various sport ruling bodies, but ultimately, what they wear is also a message to young aspiring athletes who want to emulate them... right down to the clothing.

JonBenet Ramsey

Look, the old-time feminist side of me would love to say who cares, get over yourself but the other side that sees the exploitation of girls and young women as unrelenting in our society wants to tell those same girls and young women that their bodies are not for sale, they are not for ogling, they are not for someone's prurient enjoyment. If they work hard and train and sacrifice for their athleticism, they don't need to display anything but their skills in the arena. They don't need to become overly sexual to succeed. How many of you think Little Miss Pageants are okay? That dressing up toddlers like over-dressed grownups is okay? How many of you remember JonBenet Ramsey and shudder when you recall those headshots? 

The women of Team USA are not beauty queen wannabes, they don't need to be sexed up to compete. They are women of power and commensurate skill. If we admire them, it's because we admire what they have accomplished. They, along with their male counterparts, have excelled in their sports to earn a place on this team. Their skill, their prowess, their tenacity does not need to be dolled up. 

Just look at their opening ceremony uniforms. Did you think I was kidding?

The Wifely Person's Tip o'the Week

Drought conditions in the midwest and far west are no joke.

Extreme caution is advised, especially with any form of fire.

For those at home. Keep watering to a minimum.

Running water is a privilege, not a right.