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IELTS Topic: SPORTS
Reading 1
Why aren’t women’s sports as big as men’s?
Original source: The Atlantic
The Atlantic ran two articles examining the differences that female soccer players face compared to their male counterparts.
Here are a few quotes from either the articles themselves or from readers (who sign themselves using pseudonyms) commentating on them.
“Men’s sports … have higher-quality coverage with better production values and commentary. When you watch women’s sports, there are fewer camera angles, fewer cuts to shot and fewer instant replays. It’s going to seem to be less exciting.”
Cheryl Cooky
“Elite female athletes are simply not equal to their male counterparts in terms of physical ability—kind of an important thing for an athlete, unlike in other professions. Look at any world record, or watch an NBA and WNBA game back-to-back. The difference is real and impossible to ignore. It’s just physiology.”
TheMeInTeam
If enough female fans can’t be bothered to … support women’s teams, why should men care
“Women’s sports that are identical to men’s sports—soccer and basketball, for example—will never be popular, because men are faster, stronger and more athletic. On the other hand, sports that highlight the different strengths of female athletes—tennis, gymnastics, ice skating—are popular. None of those are team sports, so there may be something there.”
Field Zhukov
Some men prefer to watch women’s tennis instead of men’s. They think it is more exciting and skillful because the women rely less on the power of their strokes. Leonard Zhukovsky/ Shutterstock
“I actually prefer watching women’s tennis. Men hit the ball so hard, particularly on the serve, that there’s less volleying and it’s less exciting to watch.”
GeorgeOrwellGeorge
“If enough female fans can’t be bothered to get together and support women’s teams so they can remain solvent, why should men care?”
BatmanDontShiv
“It’s the copycatting that is limiting female professional sports. I think it’s time the brains behind these feminist ambitions started inventing sports that women are particularly good at, ones that fit the female anatomy, physiology, and skill set. That is when the fun begins. Stop using male role models and male athletic archetypes to create meaning and legitimacy. Start making something new—that everyone will love.”
Tim Gabin