Paris Olympics 2024 so far has been a melting pot of inspiring stories of women athletes. From USA Rugby Player Ilona Maher promoting body positivity with her sensational yet heartwarming social media content to Egyptian Fencer Nada Hafez revealing that she’s 7 months pregnant, to Simone Biles emphasising on mental health and taking on haters that doubted her team to Katie Ledecky breaking all records to Indian shooter Manu Bhaker stealing hearts with her ice cold composure and making history at just 22 years old. It is truly a great time to be a woman in sports.
To think that with the presence of social media, young girls and women have the access to the ‘behind-the-scenes’ at the Olympic Village, where women athletes are sticking it up to gender norms and societal expectations is truly a marvel of the generation we’re living in.
To start with Ilona, someone who has been bullied all her life for being a strong, burly woman, has been using her voice and platform to show her followers that even Olympians are human and look like everyday people. She has been using her social media account to highlight how ‘all body types can be Olympians’ and that ‘looking’ a certain way shouldn’t hold you back from achieving your dreams. She even spoke out about her donning red lipstick when she steps out on the field, revealing that she does so to make a ‘stick-it-to-the-man’ type statement
“I don’t want to be one thing. I can be a beast and play a physical sport while also keeping my femininity. You don’t have to sacrifice your femininity to play any sport.”
Thank you for saying that out loud Ilona! I’m sure thousands of young girls who have been told to run, throw, tackle, fight like a boy will appreciate it.
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Egyptian Fencer, Nada, all but broke the internet when she revealed in a social media post after securing her place in Round of 16 that she was 7 months pregnant. The post quickly went viral as fans celebrated her strength and determination while also joking about how her yet-to-come baby is already an Olympian. Imagine having a body so strong that you’re creating another life from scratch while also causing a massive upset in the Olympics! Not only is she a 3 time Olympian but also a clinical pathologist.
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Biles, the Olympic all-round champion, has had her fair share of mental health issues or ‘the twisties’ leading up to the Paris Olympics. She dropped out of the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo while making an effort to speak out about the struggles she was facing.
“Being in a good mental spot, seeing my therapist every Thursday is kind of religious for me. That’s why I’m here today,” she said after making it to the Olympics team.
Biles posted a picture of herself meditating ahead of her routine at the Paris Olympics with a simple yet powerful caption “Mental Health Matters”.
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Not only that, Simone went out of her way to take on Olympic Silver Medalist and former teammate MaKayla Skinner who publicly criticised the USA gymnastics team by saying “Besides Simone, I feel like the talent and the depth just isn’t like what it used to be. The girls don’t work as hard. The girls just don’t have the work ethic.” Biles could have kept quiet and taken it as a compliment for herself alone but she made sure to stand up for her team and clap back at Skinner by posting a picture of her team on the podium after snatching the Gold at the Paris Olympics. She captioned the post, “lack of talent, lazy, olympic champions”. Talk about standing up for your teammates.
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It almost seems like it is a new world for women in sports and for women watching them. As they step onto the metaphorical podiums, women are making sure that they give each other a boost. A new sisterhood is blooming in sports and it is evident and on display thanks to social media. Watching from the outside, it’s clear that women have each other’s backs and that there is a safe space for everyone, no matter how they look, how tall, slim or short they are. Women, themselves, have created a space for co-existing, not just in peace, but also while celebrating their differences.
Women athletes like Simone, Manu, Ilona, Nada and more are inspiring a generation of young girls who see that strength is not just in physical prowess but also in emotional resilience and mutual support. As more women continue to uplift each other, the world of sports becomes a beacon of empowerment, showing that true victory lies in unity and understanding.