Despite many obstacles confronting them, women play sports in every corner of the world. In developing countries women are playing, but many still remain on the sidelines. While there is support for sport in some developing countries, the level of support does not match what women and girls in the United States are afforded. By highlighting the benefits that women gain from sports, we can garner more support for programs that fund sports projects for women. With increased exposure to the knowledge of the benefits women gain from sports, health and development organizations may be more inclined to integrate athletics into their agendas. By integrating sports into health and development initiatives we can reach a broader group of women and allow them to be more active in their communities, and in their countries.
One of the challenges women in developing nations face are the resolute views that women belong on the sidelines. Excluding women from sports also excludes them from the benefits that come from sports - self confidence, commitment to school and work, respect for one’s body. These are tools that lead to empowerment and success. As a social welfare project and investment, sports are one of the most important elements that we can provide for women. Women not only gain physical fitness and strength but they create a sense of community, get out of their safety zones, break through social barriers to find that they can do and be whatever they want. Sports should be used as a vehicle to improve the social, physical and psychological well being of women.
Providing an opportunity for women in developing countries to be exposed to sports will open doors to much more than just success on the field. Since many women in developing nations face significant challenges off the field - such as filling the role as head of household and supporting families with limited resources - initiatives to include sports in women’s lives can not simply provide a place to play, but should address issues such as education, familial and spousal abuse, health and AIDS/HIV education.
BECAUSE
While every country and community possesses incongruent levels of social acceptance of women’s participation in sports and disparate numbers of girls in the game, we can be sure that women are playing. Still, from the streets to the stadiums, women who play sports in developing countries garner minimal attention from the traditional media. Visible sports role models and peers are missing from daily life. While male athletes grace the national papers in most countries on a daily basis, women rarely make pages. News coverage of female athletes and events by television and newspapers is limited. The result of minimal coverage and minimal financial and social support is a reality for many female athletes in developing countries where cultural stereotypes delineate sports as an activity reserved for men. (Sport in Latin America and the Caribbean, Arbena, J. 2002) Historically, this lack of media coverage and role models paired with limited funding and strictly defined gender roles have combined to deter women from participating in athletics in developing countries. By redrawing the lines of the past and telling the story of the present, we can get more women on to the fields, courts and streets.
Public and private support must be gathered to increase participation and to elevate funding for women’s sports programs . This can be achieved by documenting the stories of the women who are defining new roles for themselves. (Laying the Foundation for Girls’ Healthy Futures: Can Sports Play a Role?, Brady, M. 1998, Studies in Family Planning; Sport in Latin America and the Caribbean, Arbena, J. 2002)
Additionally, sports should not be viewed as a superfluous social activity. It is a right. By bringing these women and their stories into the public eye we can change and create a different future for girls and women. The stories of women who are playing need to be told to encourage the women everywhere to get out and play. By giving people images of role models and peers, you show that there are athletes who have faced the same obstacles as they have. The images and voices serve as a touchstone - a common vision or thought or experience. We create a new generation of women by sharing these images and thoughts, and by showing that sports serve as a social conduit for destroying social barriers that restrict the roles of women.
