It was recently announced that women tennis players at Wimbledon next year will get the same prize money as the men. Why does it have to be so? There is inequality in sport everywhere, but this is not sexist. Athletes in most Olympic sports and many other international sports do not get anywhere near as much as tennis players, and most likely work just as hard, but it is just the way it is. It comes down to market demands, if people are paying to watch them play, to buy products etc, then there will be money in sponsorship and gate fees that can be passed on to the players in the form of payments and prize money. If women tennis players want to get paid more, they should entertain us more, increase the quality of their play, make reasons for people to come and watch, and give us value for money. I am not saying that they are all like this, but I see are too many fat, lazy, bitchy, rich kids which are not good for the image of females in sport. If you looked at most of the high-profile women’s sports, they don’t need a pay rise – they are getting paid too much already.
Rob's Sports, Fitness & Science Blog
Entries Tagged as 'Tennis'
Women’s Tennis Prize Money
March 15th, 2007 · 2 Comments · Grand Slam Tennis, Tennis
Grunter Sharapova
February 1st, 2007 · No Comments · Tennis
I can’t stand to watch a women’s tennis match when the players grunt every time they hit the ball. I have no problem with them occasionally making a grunt as they strive for a difficult ball or put in an extra effort, but not every time they hit the ball. There is no rule against a tennis player grunting, unless in doing so they are distracting the opposition player. If they were making a loud noise as the other player was trying to hit the ball, then in could be distracting.
They should consider bringing in a rule to limit it, as it is turning people off the game. Anyone who follows tennis will see that there are other players who are also following suit, and I am sure there is a bunch of young players out there following in their idols. Now that the women are earning as much as the men in some tournaments, they should be doing their best to satisfy the sponsors and entertain the crowd, not putting them off.
Related Pages: about tennis, Maria Sharapova profile
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Breaking the Wave
January 20th, 2007 · No Comments · Grand Slam Tennis, Spectators, Tennis
Yesterday at the Australian Tennis Open we were witness to a Mexican Wave out on one of the smaller courts. An audience wave can come around pretty quickly in a small tennis stadium. They also had a double wave going, the wave going in alternate directions and seemingly passing through each other – I had not seen that before. I have also heard of crowds coming up with combinations, changing speed, and bouncing back in the direction it came. A few stadiums are discussing the option of stopping audiences from making the wave, as it is considered dangerous. Although this wave at the tennis was just a ripple as far as waves go, I would have to agree that they can be dangerous when people start throwing objects and drinks as the wave passes, and it can be distracting if you are trying to watch a game being played. If they can control it so that waves are only done during breaks in the games, and stop people from dangerous trowing of objects. It may be easier said than done, as a log day at the cricket or tennis, after a few beers, people will think they can get away with whatever they want.
Related Pages: Australian Open, Grand Slam Tennis, About Tennis
A Day at the Open
January 19th, 2007 · No Comments · Grand Slam Tennis, Tennis
I planned a nice day today at the Australian Open, avoiding the forecasted very hot weather mid week. However, today the weather has gone too far the other way, and drizzling rain set in for the day. After some days where the heat policy was put into play, it was now the turn of the wet weather policy to have an effect. Luckily our day ground pass tickets allowed entry to the Vodafone Arena, with its roof closed to the rain. We could see on the scoreboard that no play was taking place on the outside courts, so we settled in to watch a few games under shelter. There was a strong French theme providing the netertainment: Amelie Maurezmo, Gael Monfils and Richard Gasquet. At the end of the day, the clouds cleared for a short time for us to explore the outer courts and set down to watch Australian crowd favourite Wayne Arthurs. The crowd was very excited about the prospect of watching one of the few Aussies left in the draw, however, a misdirected pain killing injection prior to the match turned his leg numb, and he had to hobble off the court and withdraw only after a couple of games. It was not the day we expected, but nevertheless very entertaining.
Related Pages: Australian Open, Grand Slam Tennis, Tennis
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First Day Violence
January 15th, 2007 · No Comments · Grand Slam Tennis, Tennis
At the first day at the Australian Open there was lots of action and excitement, but unfortunately a lot of that took place off the court. Melbourne is a very multicultural city, with many Australians having European ancestry, including Croats and Serbs. There has been a long history of animosity between Serbs and Croats back home in Croatia, but not here. I don’t know all the details, but some youths from these groups had an altercation in the crowd resulting in them being ejected. These guys have mostly grown up in Australia, so they must have learnt this hatred from their parents. It is embarrassing that these images were broadcast around the world – they are painting a bad image of Australia for the world audience, one that is essentially untrue. They have obviously not embraced the spirit of Australia. The Australian Open has a history of the Swedes being very vocal and colourful, and they have added a unique flavour to this ‘friendly’ tournament. There has never been a serious complaint about their behaviour. The authorities are going to increase security at the tennis from now on, but the tennis supporters don’t want to see a stop to people dressing up, chanting and showing support for their country or parent’s country.
Related Pages: Australian Open, Grand Slam Tennis, Tennis
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No grunting please
November 23rd, 2006 · No Comments · Fitness, Tennis
A New York fitness club, which has outlets nationwide, has a long list of “dos and don’ts” that its members have to follow. That does not sound too bad. However, one of these rules is that no grunting is allowed, apparently to create a non-intimidating environment. And they enforce the rules too. Recently, one of the club’s members was expelled for grunting. I don’t know if he ended up giving a bit more resistance, but eventually Police Officers were called in by the management to escort the patron out. He admitted emitting several grunts when he was about to lift 227 kilograms. I think sometimes you have to make some noise to get the most out of a lift, and it usually feels good too. Where they need to stop the grunting is during women’s tennis matches. It really annoys me when I am trying to enjoy watching a game of tennis and all I can hear are the women grunting. The Wimbledon Championship have laid down the law in the past with regulating the clothing people could wear, now they should regulate the sounds the women can make too.
Related Pages: chosing a fitness club, tennis, Wimbledon
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