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Realistic portrayals of athletic bodies

posted by One Sport Voice
Wednesday, March 9, 2011 at 6:03pm EST

Dr. Nicole M. LaVoi: This blog reflects my critical eye and voice on all things sport. I am a critical thinker, scholar, and researcher in girls & women in sport, youth sport, and coach & sport parent education.

If you know the history of sport media coverage of athletes, you know that it is problematic and has limitations. I saw this tweet come through on Sociological Images (@SocImages) The Perfect Body, as Illustrated by Olympic Athletes and wanted to share it.

Serena Williams ESPN Magazine Oct 2009

I love this photography project by Howard Schartz and Beverly Ornstein, as it represents all types of athletic bodies not just the bodies that represent society norms of what it means to be attractive and athletic, different sports, men and women, and doesn’t sexualize or marginalize female athletes.I chose this picture of the eight photos in the project because it includes Olympic weightlifter Cheryl Haworth, whom you NEVER see in covered in the sport media.

While you could critique the photos for not being “in action, on the court, or in uniform” these pictures are a much different representation of athletic bodies than The Body Issue of ESPN The Magazine.

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