Sportscene's Take: Academic report shuns Rogge’s “major boost for gender equality” at London 2012

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Sportscene's Nicolaas Harding breaks down the University of Torontos report - which analysed whether London 2012 was in fact a model for gender equality in sport - for Olympic Canoe/Kayak. Results are, despite more female athletes competing in every sport and from every nation, startling: there are still major inequalities across the majority of participating to be addressed.

http://www.sportscene.tv/news/academic-report-shuns-rogges-major-boost-for-gender-equality-at-london-2012 

A major point in the report:

"...we are concerned that attempts to control Olympic ‘gigantism’ are being linked to efforts to increase gender equality in a way that pits men and women against each other – reducing the number of men’s events in order to increase the number of women’s events. It should be remembered that men and women athletes are not the one’s responsible for ‘gigantism’ or for gender inequality at the Olympics, and should not be the ones to suffer through resolving one problem by creating another.  If achieving gender equality means increasing the size of the Olympic Programme, at least temporarily, so be it."

Please see the the University of Toronto London 2012 Audit Executive Summary.  http://www.playthegame.org/knowledge-bank/articles/the-london-2012-olympics-a-gender-equality-audit-5567.html

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