Gender Discrimination in South Asian Sports
Weve often had discussions about sports on the dinner table, but how many of those discussions have included female athletes? One can hardly remember. Its not until, women bring home medals is that we start talking about them, unlike male athletes whore always under the radar of interest and watched fondly. When we speak about South Asian households, the above stated scenario is very common. In a region where even basic education can be a challenge for girls, training to be a female athlete is even harder. The gender bias is not only limited to households, but also the Sports federations themselves.
Women athletes in a webinar arranged by SAPAN, shared experiences of harassment, discouragement and lack of support, as well as inspiring stories of solidarity and success. Athletes who spoke at the event included Ayesha Mansukhani, athlete and sports investor, from India, Caryll Tozer, activist and former netball player from Sri Lanka, Bangladeshi cricketer Champa Chakma, Mabia Akhter Shimanto, an award-winning weight-lifting champion from Bangladesh, Indian coach and cricketer Roopa Nagraj, and Preety Baral a national tennis player from Nepal. War has taken away everything from us, said Khalida Popal, former captain of the Afghanistan Womens National Football Team. Someone had to take a step. I was harassed, criticised and attacked but didnt give up. My fight was not just for myself. It was for my sisters and for all other women in my country. South Asia is like our home, Popal said. Our pain is the same. What is missing is unity.
Differently-abled athletes face an even more difficult struggle. No one wanted to sponsor a blind runner, said partially blind athlete Gulshan Naaz from the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Besides the issues of leadership, funding, discrimination and fighting stereotypes common to women athletes around the region, there were concerns about the objectification of women and sexual harassment, which deserve more attention. Participants at the webinar proposed working on a book project as well as setting up a South Asian women athletes association to promote female athletes in the region.
Cisgender women arent the only ones facing discrimination in this male-dominated field. When we hold this conversation about women, we fail to mention the lack of South Asian trans women in sports. For instance, lets talk about the case of Santhi Soundarajan. The twenty-five-year-old ran the 800 m and won a silver medal in the women's 800 m race at the 2006 Asian Games, clocking 2 min 3.16 sec. She lost the medal in two days. From the news on television, she got to know that she had failed the gender test. Till then, she had no inkling as to what the test was all about. Her body became a ground for popular discussion across media houses and everybody had a final say about her body except Santhi Soundarajan herself. Unfortunately the government took no interest in supporting her until2016 when she was appointed as a permanent coach. Imagine winning medals for a country which doesnt support you.
As of today, more and more people can fathom the idea of women in South Asia participating in all kinds of sports. But they still have a long way to go. For trans women, even when they beat the obstacles and reach the grounds, theyre denied the right to compete, which discouraging the anticipating young trans teens furthermore. What we need are governments with a progressive mindset which doesnt repeat the biased mistakes and strives to encourage and support the youth to indulge in sports regardless of their gender indentity.
References:
South Asia Monitor
TOI
Nepal Times
The Bridge
feminismindia