Olympic gymnastics humiliates and infantilises grown adult women

[Thebellofstclements]

The ridiculous leotards, the twee hairstyles. Having to do the ridiculous flicky "dance" moves (artistic expression, ha!) and grinning inanely (insanely) in between moves and when presenting...
Arguably the best athletes in the world but these grown adult women have to present themselves in a ridiculous, almost grotesquely infantile manner, looking fairy cheap and tacky.
The men do not.
My family argues that the gymnasts choose to do this.
We know that historically female gymnasts have been abused with no voice, so I'm not convinced this is all what they would necessarily choose given the option. AIBU?

“The ridiculous leotards, the twee hairstyles”

I’ve googled but can’t find anything that meets this description??

Not to mention a lots of them are wearing skin coloured footless tights/leggings underneath.

frankly I think the hockey players with pretty ribbons in their hair and a ton of makeup look 'odd' & im astonished how many swimmers/divers/kayakers etc are wearing a lot of make up & earings.

id look like a panda & be losing a lot of earrings!!

none of them
are being forced into it, & plenty of the gymnast aren't, so I think you're wrong to think the gymnasts are being forced!!

Was it the Chinese gymnast whose bun came almost completely undone in her floor routine? Because I was thinking the opposite (whilst crossing my fingers for her it would stay put) - why on earth, on the biggest day of your career, would you not put in every kirby grip physically possible to hold your hair in place rather than risk it coming loose and ruining your routine because you can't see?

it reminded me of this from 2019 (about 40 seconds in) her bun unravels mid tumble, luckily its still secured in a plaited ponytail.

It's a good question, @HebburnPokemon

Here are the two photos on her Olympic experience that Indonesian's first female gymnast Olympian, Rifda Irfanaluthfi, chose to post to her Instagram. Instagram users who are also supporters of women's rights may wish to follow her there, since she has received death threats for wearing leotards.

She could of course have chosen to wear a unitard. She could have posted different photos, or none. She seems to be proud of her skills and prepared to risk her life rather than surrender her freedom to dress for her sport.

OP has declined to actually point to anything specific. Here are team USA and Brazil celebrating medals last yesterday - they're probably the teams who wear the most bling and makeup, and they're also some of the oldest gymnasts. Becky Downie (in the blue gray) and the rest of the British team will likely be disappointed with 4th but I don't think they're upset about their outfits or having dance in their routines.

If only they knew that they shouldn't be proud, they should actually be feeling humiated and riculous per OP 🙄

Last time I checked they weren’t showing unnecessary amounts of flesh and covered in sequins.

You might notice chalk marks on Rifda Irfanaluthfi's legs. You will sometimes see gymnasts chalk their legs, as well as feet and hands, for the event where their legs come into contact with the apparatus (mostly bars). It helps them not to slip.

Men's events are mostly about hand and foot contact, so this issue doesn't arise.

The unitard is not necessarily a more practical option than the leotard, though gymnasts vary in preferences for socks / shoes / bare feet and grips / claws / bare hands. So it's not surprising that some like the unitard, but there is no reason to put pressure on anyone else to wear it.

Can’t see anything outrageous

What do you mean you can’t imagine doing it ‘at that age’? She’s an athlete at the top of her game. The ‘that’s just me’ part suggests you think it’s not suitable or something.

What unnecessary flesh? By whose judgement? Should Rifda Irfanaluthfi cover up because men are sending her death threats, or is it only mumsnetters who should determine what's appropriate?

What's wrong with women wearing sequins on the biggest occasion of their lives, if they want to? Or every day of the week if they want to ... but women dressing up for big occasions is not newsworthy.

I do think these young girls having to wear a leotard must be very traumatic.

Do you think the millions of people that wear a swimsuit / bikini every day are also traumatised by the experience?

I ask this as someone who dresses “modestly” by the way (and for full disclosure doesn’t agree with the traditional meaning of the word).

I have to say the USA leotards looks amazing under the lights and cameras- the bling matched their gold medals. If I’d just won gold like they had I’d want to be in all the bloody sequins too. Most of them had a story- they’d all done so well to get there- for Simone it was a big FU to people who doubted her after Tokyo, one of the other girls in the team has a chronic kidney condition that stopped her training for ages. They are all strong women and if they want to wear some glitter why the hell shouldn’t they! They are performing on the world stage to millions and I’d hazard a guess more people will recognise the women gymnasts than the men.

My daughter (very much not an elite gymnast) much prefers a leotard- she hated the one time she went in shorts and tshirt as the material was flapping around, her top falling when she was upside down and was no-where near as comfortable.

Also… check out Tom Daley’s instagram- the speedos are certainly not holding him back. He looks like he’s living his best life showing off his 6 pack.

I've often thought this tbh. When my daughter did gymnastics I cringed at some of the twee routines, getting marks for "acting/facial expressions", so-called "cute" bum wiggles, the men don't do it, they don't do a musical routine at all! I think the skill is obviously amazing and incredible but please get rid of the "artistic expression" unless the men do it, which they never would! And the leotards hmm, there's a reason loads of 12 year old girls quit gym and that's periods!! Wear shorts if you want! They are comfy and you can still move!

Lots of people prefer women's gymnastics to men's, though. Why should they have to match? They have different rules, and often one or the other is popular in a particular country. They have different coaches and histories and codes of points etc. Women don't have to mimic men just because you prefer the men's sport!

Women aren't obliged to wear leotards. If they do wear them, they may wear tights / leggings under or over them Many wear shorts to train. Unitards are an option

Those are the rules for elite international gymnastics. If clubs aren't giving girls these options, there's work to be done there. But women may and do also choose to wear leotards.

I will often change my hair the moment I leave work

I have to have it tied back and chose a style which isn't my "usual" but is tighter and more out of the way

Once I finish, I will often redo it into something looser.

Many of the women do in the staff room

Beth Tweddle was 27 in the London Olympics. Oksana Chusovitina would have been in Paris if not for injury, at... 48. She may be at the LA games. Paris would have been her eighth games.

Johanna Quaas was competing as an ametur in to her 80s.

I wear my hair up when I race (run). If my head or hair is wet when I finish (rain or sweat) then I take it down and get a brush through it asap otherwise it will dry a tangled nest.
I think you're looking for something that isn't an issue.

That’s all very well if it’s a personal choice. But not when it’s a societal expectation that applies to women but not to men. Do you really believe that, all things being equal, women would opt for outfits that expose their bodies more, hair and makeup that requires hours of preparation, and painful and expense hair removal?

That's really not a gymnastics specific issue. My observation is that young men are much more body and grooming conscious than previously, so we will see what cultural change brings.

Meanwhile, the evidence we have is that these women, acting within the same parameters as other women in our society, had a choice of different styles, outfits and "coverage" and chose what to wear. Criticising them for showing flesh seems really regressive to me.

Given a choice, many people of both sexes show a lot more flesh than we saw on the gymnastics podium. And there are good practical arguments for the leotard as a sensible choice for these women's activity.

Well, male ice skaters don’t seem averse to some skin tight bling. The divers have more skin exposed. So yes, men would. I haven’t seen any hair or make up that would take hours. Hair removal doesn’t have to be expensive or painful, and most young women that age do it (which is a whole other conversation, I agree) so it’s not for competition as such. Male swimmers and cyclists also remove body hair.

Male swimmers and cyclists also remove body hair.

I imagine there is a lot of male hair removal going on, and what with the chest, back and generally more and thicker body hair, that's got to be more uncomfortable than it is for the women.

I think the male divers are spending a considerable amount of time preparing their bodies before slipping into the tiniest of trunks.

Yes

Because they do choose it

Stop dismissing women's choices as being "for men"

Male Olympians have joked about "Back, Sack and Crack" waxes for ages

By all accounts it's apparently very uncomfortable

But removing body hair is an advantage to their sport so they do it.

Maybe we should start complaining about that?