4 Unit 01 Ready to rumble Unit 01 | Ready to rumble Read this 2004 opinion piece by a feminist writer about women and sports. Some parts are missing. Choose the correct part (A–L) for each gap (1–9). There are two extra parts that you should not use. Write your answers in the boxes provided. The first one (0) has been done for you. READING 1 Why women don’t do sports Most women would say that they have very little time to themselves. The time they don’t spend working for an employer, they do something called ‘housework’, and, for most women between 25 and 50, ‘childcare’ is additional. There is also the task of (0) , tidy, deodorised, made up, not to mention toned and well-dressed, plus the exhausting business of hair and hairiness management. Work, all of it. Women either don’t do leisure or they do activities that aren’t too expensive, and they (1) . Men spend their free time relaxing, but for women it’s just another form of work. There are powerful reasons why women steer clear of leisure activities, including sports. The majority of women worldwide – who are unpaid family workers – know only too well that if they are ever seen with their hands in their laps, a job (2) . Even today, in more traditional societies, the holidays on which menfolk are permitted to straighten their backs and (3) are the days when women have to work hardest, cleaning up the house and (4) . It is not so long ago that on Sundays, while the rest of the family played cricket on the village green, the woman of the house had to cook and serve a three-course Sunday lunch and subsequently clean up after it. Today, everybody male is occupied with leisure and sports activities. Has the woman of the house grabbed a kitbag and followed their example? No. Women (5) . Women do play golf, but not much. Women don’t buy sports equipment. Women don’t buy sports cars, boats, jetskis, trailbikes, guns, crossbows … Women do not listen to the call of sports and leisure. But it is also true that the sports and leisure industry does not address women that much. Their argument comes full circle: it is that no female market exists. Sport has traditionally been regarded as male territory, and women doing sports have always had to fight against gender stereotypes (6) . Among the 258 athletes lining up at the start of the first Winter Olympics held in 1924 in Chamonix, only 11 were female, all of them figure skaters. And it was not their sports achievement, but the length of their skirts, reaching just below the knee, which caused a furore. Things have changed a little, but researchers have discovered that sports that are beautiful, graceful, non-aggressive or pleasing to the eye are typically considered appropriate for women. On the other hand, face-to-face competition, aggression and body contact are seen as masculine. Researchers say people automatically (7) , discipline, stamina and loyalty to a team. Cultural prejudices can also be a barrier for women interested in sports. In India, for example, a country where light skin is still considered prestigious, the myth that chlorine darkens the skin keeps status-conscious women out of – admittedly rare – public swimming pools. Religious issues also come into play: (8) in a swimsuit might be challenging not only for body-conscious Western women, but also for women of different religions. Create a garment like the burkini that allows Muslim girls the freedom to do sports and provides modesty at the same time, and it becomes a political issue. That’s why it is important that high-profile sports equipment companies like Nike have developed products like the ‘Pro Hijab’, catering to the growing number of women who want to do sports but still (9) . As Aheda Zanetti, the creator of the burkini, says of her invention: “Anyone can wear this, Christian, Jewish, Hindu. It’s just a garment to suit a modest person, or someone who is afraid of skin cancer, or a new mother who doesn’t want to wear a bikini, […].” Key Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
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