Dropping the Miss and Mrs: A Small Step Towards Combating Elitism and Sexism at Wimbledon?
2022: the year when Wimbledon finally realized its time to listen to the public and make changes
Wimbledon, the most prestigious tennis tournament held annually in southwest London, has long been regarded as the epitome of class, tradition, and excellence in the world of tennis. While the event showcases the finest talents in the sport and captivates audiences with its heritage and regal atmosphere, it is crucial to acknowledge its elitist nature.
Wimbledon's exclusivity, from its stringent dress code to its members-only access and exorbitant ticket prices, has raised pertinent questions about accessibility, diversity, and the perpetuation of social hierarchies within the tournament.
In this week’s newsletter, we will look at two new changes brought on by AELTC (The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club Limited) to make the tournament more inclusive.
This year’s Wimbledon started on Monday and like always I was excited for the tournament. My social media timelines are filled with articles about Wimbledon and that’s where I came across a couple of articles which talked about changes indicating signs of positive change at Wimbledon.
Back in December of 2019, the AELTC (organizers of Wimbledon) appointed Sally Bolton as the new Chief Executive Officer. What’s the big deal you think? Well, she is the first female chief executive officer (source) of AELTC since the role has been established!!! Sally Bolton won the CEO race but she had an uphill task when it came to combating sexism at the tournament.
You see, Wimbledon’s policy about tradition has invariably targeted women. One of my biggest gripes has been how Wimbledon etches the names of female winners on its trophy and honour roll with ‘Miss’ or ‘Mrs.’ That’s not all, they don’t etch the name of the winner in women’s side but refer to the winner as ‘Miss/Mrs Father’s name or Husband’s name’!!! Eg: when Serena Williams looks at her trophy, it’ll be etched as “Miss S.Williams”, indicating she is unmarried and her father’s name is Richard Williams. Where is “SERENA”???
Imagine this. You are a woman who had to fight tooth and nail all your life to win the biggest tournament in tennis and when you get the trophy you notice that your name is not etched on it but your marital status (Miss or Mrs) and your father’s or husband’s name are on it! This is what players like Evonne Goolagong and Chris Evert had to go through. The 1980 and 1981 Women’s Singles winners are still referred to as Mrs.R.Cawley and Mrs.J.M.Lloyd (she was married to John Lloyd at the time) respectively. Is a woman’s worth based only on her marital status and the men in her life? How absurd! And Wimbledon calls this tradition!
If you still think this isn’t gross, look at the honour roll on the Men’s side. Notice something? Yeah, no titles! Only their names.
Like me, I guess many people have been flabbergasted by Wimbeldon’s antics for many years. So, in 2022 they finally decided to drop 'Mrs' and 'Miss' before names on women's honour roll boards in line with men's presentation (source). The 2022 Women’s Singles winner’s name was etched as “E.Rybakina”. I would’ve preferred “Elena Rybakina” but small steps is better than nothing I guess.
One more “tradition” which required an overhaul is the dress-code. Another “tradition” which invariably affects women.
"Competitors must be dressed in suitable tennis attire that is almost entirely white and this applies from the point at which the player enters the court surround," the official Wimbledon dress code reads, noting that white "does not include off white or cream.
Any undergarments that either are or can be visible during play (including due to perspiration) must also be completely white except for a single trim of colour no wider than one centimetre (10mm)."
Additionally, according to the dress code, shoes, hats, headbands, wristbands, and socks must also be white.
Now you may be thinking how does this affect women. Allow me to explain.
In 2017, Venus Williams was asked to change mid-match because her pink bra was showing. Mihaela Buzărnescu was forced to switch bras with her coach a few minutes before her match, after officials demanded she changed her black bra. These incidents sparked outrage with many calling it indecent to make women change mid-game and in front of the crowd. What is common sense is that white undergarments become transparent when players perspire and this would make the women players self-conscious and understandably uncomfortable.
All this led to the #AddressTheDressCode protests. Billie Jean King, a champion and women’s rights activist, said that female players were worried about the bloodstains due to menstruation on the all-white dress they wore during Wimbledon. Judy Murray (mother of champions Andy Murray and Jamie Murray) joined the movement and talked about the “traumatic experience” of a possible leak on the white uniform while playing, and emphasized the importance of having more women among the decision-makers.
All these issues feel like common sense but how can we expect reasoning from the elitist men who sit in members-only lounges while writing these dress codes???
In 2022, Wimbledon finally relented. For the first time in almost 150 years Wimbledon changed its women's dress code: players are now allowed to wear dark-coloured undershorts (source). Do you think this is too small a change? Hopefully this is the first step towards giving the players the right to wear what they want and abolishing the archaic dress-code.
Do you think these changes would still have happened if Sally Bolton was not appointed the new Chief Executive Officer of AELTC? Do you think it’s time to bring in more diversity to sports associations across the globe?
Rohith’s Corner:
If you’ve been a frequent reader of this newsletter you would know that I started learning to play tennis. It’s been fun! I’ve been loving it! But one thing that’s been an issue for me is getting up in the morning at 5:30AM. God, it’s so tough to get up when the bed is calling you to lay down and sleep!!! Help me!!! Tell me how to beat that sleepiness.
Lovely