‘Mummy, why do all of the runners have black skin?’

[MoiraRoseIsMyQueen]

So, my 5-year-old has just asked this question while watching the 100m heats, and I’m struggling to answer! Does anyone have any advice on how to respond, without making generalisations or being racist? I am so sorry if I sound ignorant but I said ‘because people from Africa tend to be very good at running because of their genetics’ - and then thought that is probably not a good answer. Help!

There's definitely a big cultural aspect as well.

If you're from the US, your chance of becoming a world class cricketer is lower than in India or Australia because if you're good with a bat and ball you'll get pushed towards baseball, because it's more popular and just has more clubs and opportunities.

It's not that all Africans/people of recent African heritage are faster or better at running. It's really only specific areas, it's a big old place.
So whilst many of the world's runners might have darker skin, darker skin does not necessarily confer an athletic advantage in general.

The other thing to bear in mind is that running is an accessible sport in lower income countries. Things like dressage will overwhelmingly be dominated by wealthier countries (which shouldn't necessarily correlate to skin colour, but realistically mostly seems to still).

It is odd to explain it based on genetics! What next? Why are our prime misters are all white? Um, genetics my dear.

Honestly, get yourself and your children to have mixed friends, watch international tv shows and movies. So different races and ethnicities become a natural part of their world and are more normal to them (and you).

@patcarmichaelenergy

Does your daughter ask this type of question when she sees all white people playing sports or on TV in general?

Of course not. Because to her it's what she sees every day. That's why she's curious enough to ask.

Whereas your question is just goady.

@jskei erm it’s the Olympics, these weren’t GB runners so I don’t really understand your comment

@CayrolBaaaskin yes I really don’t understand the aggression from some posters. He’s five for God’s sake, he’s not being racist - I was posting because I was doing my best not to be in my response to him!

@Greenlittle my thinking was that some ethnic groups tend to have, for example, longer limbs which may contribute to their ability to run very fast. I don’t think I was going into it as deeply as you’re suggesting.

But I wouldn't discount genetic factors (as in, the probability of having a particular combination of genetic advantages being higher in some races) working alongside environmental factors to explain the success of black sprinters.

The genetic and enviromental factors almost cetrainly also interact.

For instance, if some subset of the population of Jamaica is naturally predisposed to be good at sprinting then that would bring the country success at that sport, which would increase the populairty of the sport, which would encourage more people to participate, which would make it easier for coaches to identify those people with a predisposition to be a good at sprinting, which would lead to more success and so on.

Nature and nuture rarely act independently.

It’s important to not stereotype as not all black people are fast nor can’t swim etc. Conversely white people are not all brilliant swimmers or east Asian the best weight lifters or sharp shooters etc.

Certain Olympic sports are particularly popular in certain cultures so irrespective of skin colour.

Additionally not all sports are in the Olympics and some of the top professional athletes do not complete in the Olympics such as the English men’s national football team of professional players with some black players or other top men’s national football teams.

Most black olympic runners / champions are from Jamaica, the US, or of Nandi origin (regardless of nationality). So the correct answer is to encourage your DD to look beyond skin colour into the national differences in training and the specifics about Nandi kids (low body fat, small, raised on fairly low fat high protein diets, run barefoot so have stronger feet) that make trainers love to train them for long distance.

I should also point out that due to discrimination the blacksportsmen who get pulled up the ranks often are the best because they HAVE to be. In reality Olympic sport qualification is still very much a white person’s game.

And for those saying it’s rude to talk about skin colour etc - actually we make a real effort in our house to notice and talk about people who look ‘different’ to us, in an effort to help DS understand the world. We live in a very white British area, so we work hard to talk about culture, religion, etc.

@MoiraRoseIsMyQueen He was being observant and wondering if it was a factor in their success. That’s not racist - it’s showing depth of thought.
We all notice similarities and differences between each other every day. Skin shade is just one, and I don’t think children need to be shamed for commenting.

The underlying reasons and journeys for the athletes will be various - the main point being that the colour of their skin is not the reason they are elite athletes.

I remember reading about Usain Bolt and how hes so unusual as most sprinters are not very tall like him.

Just say because we’re all different and they are ‘insert race/nationality/ here’ and sometimes those people will have black skin. There’s nothing wrong with him asking and theees nothing wrong with explaining. It is a FACT and last I knew, FACTS are not racist. Racists are racist.

@Bryonyshcmyony Did he ask why the three 800m runners from GB are white and blonde?

Well no, because seeing groups of people with a mixture of skin colours isn’t unusual to him. The heat we were watching was made up of solely black runners, which is why he asked the question. But thanks for the effort to be goady

@CinnamonJellyBeans

“ Once they hit the age of ten or so, you might want to ask them to explore why the sports which need money and private transport, like horse-riding, swimming, skiing have such a skewed ethnic profile.”

Excellent point. My kids take part in sports which are very “white” where the predominance of white participants is almost entirely down to social, cultural and financial factors rather than physiological differences. White people are not genetically better sailors or rowers.

About 10 or so years ago I was in a corner shop with DS who asked, very loudly, "Mummy, why are all the people in this shop black?"

It was a good question. We lived in a very white area, and I doubt he'd ever seen a black person that close up before.

The last thing that anyone should say to a five year old is that it's rude to mention black skin colour. You're giving them the impression that there's something shameful about it, and in their minds it will be the blackness that is 'wrong' because it's not to be mentioned.

Likewise all this avoiding the question and answering one that wasn't asked instead, is also pretty awful. Five year olds aren't stupid. You're sending the same message that there was something wrong about the question they asked. And there really isn't.

Seriously, people tying themselves in knots like this are the ones who are being racist. Just in a different way.

The answer that mentions different builds is honest, straightforward, and not racist in any way.

@BlueorOlive

because people from Africa tend to be very good at running because of their genetics But they are not from Africa. Many are ^from the US, UK or EU countries.

I think this is a tricky and interesting question OP. I'd say
"some black people have bodies that are really great for running fast or long distance, it's due to their physique. Saying that, ds, anyone who loves running can train and try to be the best at running that they can and people with any kind of skin colour can be awesome runners."

Yeahhh this...., plus ALL the runners at the Olympics will have worked really really hard to get so fast, regardless of the bodies they have.

I would just say there isn't one reason but I guess they must all just train really hard. I feel that talking about genetics detracts from their achievements.

Also laughing at all the suggestions of saying ‘I don’t know’ - not an acceptable answer in our house

Genetics does have something to do with it, but not the genetics involved with skin colour, specifically! :D

“ The answer that mentions different builds is honest, straightforward, and not racist in any way.”

Yes, it is stereotyping and racist. A small step removed from saying black people tend to be great dancers because of their body type or whatever.

Honestly, the best way to explain this is to find movies or documentaries on some of these runners and show to your ds. So he sees their different journeys, challenges and personalities. Make people real, so he relates to them on a human level.

The biggest factor that explains someone being in the olympics is grit and determination. And that’s not down to genetics