LOW INVOLVEMENT OF FEMALES IN SPORTS COMPETITIONS
By OGUNTUNDE BOLUWATIFE
Covenant University has created opportunities for females to participate in sports-related activities. Female teams for various sports such as basketball, swimming, volleyball and handball have been developed for the sake of involving and ensuring the participation of these students in sports. The female students are trained and taught how to play these sports, but are never encouraged to partake in sporting competitions.
The male students of the institution are provided organized events and tournaments to compete and show what their practice has amounted to, tournaments such as the “CHANCELLORS CUP”. Yet, female students are not given the same opportunity to partake in such events or tournaments.
This is not only a topic that affects Covenant University, but it is a topic that has been discussed from time to time in society with no solution brought forward. The society we live in does not provide tangible conditions for females to compete, one main reason for women’s lack of participation in recreational and competitive sports: fear. Fear of being judged by others based on their appearance, fear about their ability to take part and fear of judgement for choosing to spend time on themselves rather than on their families.
The “roles” society has allocated to women are: the preparation and serving of meals, selection and care of clothing, laundering, furnishing and maintenance of the house with sports being left for the men, thus society has made it seem as tho women have no business dealing with sports.
This has led to a stigma surrounding the few females that compete in sporting activities which in turn discourages other females that wish to participate. Professional women’s sport is much less popular than the male equivalent and because of the lack of sponsorship, many female athletes, even those who represent their countries, have to fit training around employment.
More competitions or tournaments should be organized for females alone, so as to encourage participation in sports and increase the number of females involved and interested in sporting activities.