I decided to focus on an infographic created by an organization called Women In Sport. The data visualization was created in June 2020 as an informational infographic about the impact of COVID-19 on women’s sports. The pandemic undoubtedly affected people’s lives for better and worse – but women’s sports suffered disproportionately. Women’s suffering is a product of the limiting nature of toxic masculinity, a topic I covered last week’s blog post. It is increasingly difficult for women to be represented and respected when the whole world shuts down. I was motivated by the statistic that “77% of women will return to playing/participating” mentioned on the bottom right of the infographic. I hope that this visual emphasizes the need for women to feel motivated and confident enough to participate in sports. The pandemic was incredibly isolating, and we know sports help bring people together so I want to encourage girls to get back on the field.
During the pandemic, there was no simple solution to making sports happen. Restrictions shut down most of what we consider “normal life”. As we transition out of this period, I think we should recognize the gaps in women’s sports and work towards an equitable sports world. I found that the infographic provides an interesting visual about different aspects of sports during COVID-19. WomenInSport asks “What impact will the pandemic and the lockdown have on women’s sport?” and shows that people are interested in watching women’s sports but think women’s sports will suffer more than mens. Some of the factors that influence the “impact” include finances, media coverage, and government support. Gender equality in all these areas would make our sports world a safe place for all.
The infographic was created in partnership with Goodform, who interviewed over 2000 sports fans about how they felt. I want to highlight the tab stating “women are more anxious and cautious about it” referring to women’s feelings about returning to sports. Women are facing mounting pressure and face more obstacles to success than men. The pandemic highlighted the lack of coverage that women receive, however it also showed us that fans want to see women’s sports return. Highlighting the value of women will motivate and empower women to either watch or participate in sports. I would argue that investing in women’s sports will help change the sports ecosystem.