MEDIA REFLECTIONS OF THE OLYMPIC PHILOSOPHY: TOKYO 2020 OLYMPIC GAMES AND GENDER EQUALITY

Year 2024, Volume: 8 Issue: 1, 1 - 14, 30.03.2024

Sabiha Gizem Engin

https://doi.org/10.47525/ulasbid.1379882

Abstract

In the first modern Olympics, there was no female athlete representation at all, while in the 1900 Olympics, this representation was limited to 2.2%. Tokyo 2020 was touted as a “turning point” in the media and went down in history as the Olympics with the lowest level of gender inequality. This research aims to raise awareness of gender equality by evaluating the gender-based athlete actions covered in the media during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, which was touted as the “most equal” Olympics in the media, and by revealing the difference between qualitative equality and quantitative equality. This research is a case study that deals with gender-based actions with a qualitative approach. The research involves a document analysis of athlete actions reflected in the media. The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games are assessed under two categories: steps supporting equality and steps demanding equality. The steps supporting equality include the number of female and male athletes, female athletes included in existing Olympic branches, and mixed sports branches, the ban on sexist media coverage of women, and equal representation of female and male athletes in ceremonies. Steps demanding equality include requests for changes in athletes’ competition attire, the desire for women to participate in still inaccessible disciplines, calls for regulations concerning sexual orientation differences, and protests against current events. In conclusion, after the end of Tokyo 2020, acknowledged as the most qualitatively equal Olympics in history, the focus on gender equality, and changes brought about by activist actions of female athletes striving for qualitative equality, serve as role models for societal change.

Keywords

Olympics, Female Athlete, Gender Equality, Media, Tokya 2020

OLİMPİK FELSEFENİN MEDYA YANSIMALARI: TOKYO 2020 OLİMPİYAT OYUNLARI VE CİNSİYET EŞİTLİĞİ

Abstract

Gerçekleştirilen ilk modern Olimpiyatlarda hiç kadın sporcu temsili bulunmazken, 1900’de gerçekleşen Olimpiyatlarda ise bu temsil oranı sadece %2,2 ile sınırlı kalmıştır. Tokyo 2020 ise medyada bir “dönüm noktası” olarak lanse edilmiş ve cinsiyet eşitsizliğinin en az düzeyde olduğu Olimpiyat olarak tarihe geçmiştir. Bu araştırma, medyada “en eşit” Olimpiyat olarak lanse edilen Tokyo 2020 Olimpiyat Oyunları süresince, medyada yer alan toplumsal cinsiyet temelli sporcu eylemlerinin değerlendirilmesi ve niteliksel eşitliğin niceliksel eşitlikten farkının ortaya konması ile toplumsal cinsiyet eşitliği yolunda bir farkındalık oluşturulması amacını taşımaktadır. Bu araştırma, toplumsal cinsiyet temelli eylemleri nitel yaklaşımla ele alan bir durum çalışmasıdır. Gerçekleştirilen araştırmada, medyaya yansıyan sporcu eylemleri üzerinden bir doküman analizi gerçekleştirilmiştir. Tokyo 2020 Olimpiyat Oyunları, eşitliği destekleyici atılmış adımlar ve eşitlik talebi oluşturan adımlar olarak iki farklı başlık altında değerlendirilmiştir. Eşitliği destekleyen adımlar başlığı altında kadın ve erkek sporcu sayıları, mevcut olimpik branşlara dâhil edilen kadın sporcular, karma spor branşları, medyada kadınlar üzerinden cinsiyetçi yayın yasağı ve seremonilerde kadın ve erkek sporcuların eşit temsili yer almaktadır. Eşitlik talebi oluşturan adımlar ise sporcuların yarış kıyafetlerindeki değişiklik isteği, kadınların hala katılım gösteremedikleri branşlara dâhil olma arzusu, cinsel yönelim farklılıklarına ilişkin düzenleme talebi ve güncel olaylara karşı gerçekleştirdikleri protestolar yer almaktadır. Sonuç olarak; tarihin niteliksel olarak en eşit Olimpiyatları kabul edilen Tokyo 2020’nin toplumsal cinsiyet eşitliği odağındaki değişimler, kadın sporcuların niteliksel eşitlik sağlamak amacı ile ortaya koymuş oldukları aktivist eylemler bağlamında toplumsal değişime rol model olduğu ifade edilebilir.

Keywords

Olimpiyat, toplumsal cinsiyet, Kadın Sporcu, Medya, Tokya 2020

Ethical Statement

Araştırma içerik analizi olduğu için herhangi bir etik izine gerek yoktur.

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