Open Access Research Article
DISCRIMINATION IN SPORTS-BY Ananya Sachdeva & Anoushka Bhatnagar
Published Paper
Article Details
DISCRIMINATION IN SPORTS
Submitted by:
ANANYA SACHDEVA & ANOUSHKA BHATNAGAR
Email I’d: s.nannu0709@gmail.com
&
ABSTRACT
Sports have existed since the beginning of human life in a variety of
forms, from hunting in earlier times
to cricket and football now. We still know very little about the problems
affecting the world of sports in
general. our nation. The players occasionally deal with issues like bullying and sexual exploitation However, there are
situations when the players themselves are causing legal problems by engaging in unethical behaviour, like as doping.
In any case It is impossible to dispute
the significance of legislation in sports. Given the rising the players'
rivalry and hostility, combined with
the Players, coaches, businesses, etc. all stand to gain greater financial
rewards. increasing their involvement in illegal activity.
The purpose of this research
paper is to provide an overview of the condition
of sports discrimination today. The international actions that support the need to tackle it are
compiled in this study. Discrimination is one of the primary issues in world sports. We have covered
six different forms of sports discrimination in this research report. Despite considerable diversity, stigmatisation
based on outward traits including skin
colour, body type, and gender is a common form of discrimination in sports.
Additionally, it's critical
to distinguish between
intentional and unintentional discrimination. Sports are surrounded by a thick cloud that is difficult
to see through since it has many layers and shapes.
As a result, the author of this research
work has elaborated on six topics in relation
to discrimination based on
gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, economic status, and religion.
INTRODUCTION
We observe a devaluation of everything in a postmodern, worldwide
culture. the sport has shifted away from being an intelligent, honest, and team sport. a tool for business, image, and ranking
(of nations, media, and sports associations),exercise is a significant ways to increase
and strengthen the respect for people's rights. It can
be utilised to tackle all types of violence,
injustice, and generalised forms of social exclusion and racism and
intolerance (Final Report of the Human Rights, 2015). Recent publications and studies from Ukraine indicate
that the problem of Sports discrimination has been
studied scientifically (Palamarchuk et al., 2020; As of 2019, Sitovskyi et al. Consequently, this study paper will
evaluate many forms sports: (a) gender discrimination; (b) racial discrimination discrimination; (c) economic
discrimination; (d) discrimination based on religion; (e)
discrimination based on disability; f) prejudice against LGBTQ people; g) various types of discrimination. The same time
Scholars note that prejudice must be
distinguished over time. from sports differentiation (Alekseev, Sattarov &
Bredikhin, 2018). Making a distinction is the essence
of discrimination. However,
When based on, distinction turns into discrimination. unreasonable or prohibited standards In practise,
discrimination entails treating people differently who are in comparable
circumstances based on at least one
illegal criterion. According to Eurostat studies, discrimination perception is
more pervasive than actual discrimination. Sport, which is widely practised
and is optional, can contributions to fostering understanding
and reaching out to groups that have been marginalised and alienated where other plans have failed. Conversely,
Competitive sport can be seen as a means
of differentiating, categorising, and rating competitors. based on their
performance level, age, and gender.
However, it is commonly acknowledged that By bringing together competitors from various backgrounds, athletics ensures an even playing
field for everyone. competing against
those from different (geographical, cultural, religious, and socioeconomic)
backgrounds and adhering
to the same institutional and ethical framework, all coming together under one set of norms
athletic community
GENDER DISCRIMINATION
Due to the disparity in pay,
viewership, and general opportunities between men and women in the world of competitive
sports, gender discrimination in sports has long been a contentious issue. In
the twenty-first century, there is still a problem with gender discrimination
because more males than women watch football and because there is little media
coverage of women's football.
1. Why are women's sports
viewed as less worthy
than men's sports?
Many people believe that if women's sports received greater media
attention or sponsorship, audiences
would be more interested in watching. According to the media, they would devote more time and resources to women's sport if it initially attracted
greater attention. Most individuals
concur that media attention, commercial appeal, and public interest are
necessary for a sport to be
successful. Sponsors are less willing to support groups or individuals who
receive little media attention, and
there aren't many female athletes in this category. Women's sports only earned
7% of media coverage and a startling
0.4% of business sponsorships in 2013, according
to the Women's Sport and Fitness Foundation. Due to a lack of financing,
many female athletes, including those
who compete internationally, must schedule their training around jobs. When paid, women typically make less than their
male counterparts in the world of professional golf. Women's association offers just 50 million in prize money,
whereas Association offers 256 million.
The compensation for female coaches is likewise unequal to that of male
coaches. The way that the public views female athletes is another problem.
Women are first viewed as moms or spouses before they are recognised as
professional athletes, whereas professional athletes are viewed as heroes who live and breathe
their sport. Furthermore, women are frequently sexualized and objectified in the media,
which gives their appearance far greater prominence than their
abilities.
2. Male discrimination based on gender
We can't, however, deny that male athletes are impacted by gender
stereotypes in sports. For instance,
bulling is frequently perpetrated against male athletes who participate in
"feminine" sports like
dancing and figure skating as children. This is taking place as a result of
society’s presumption that men should
be tall, strong, and muscular, which makes it possible for anyone who doesn't
fit their ideal to face
discrimination.1
RACIAL DISCRIMINATION
Racism,
according to the Oxford Dictionary, is "the belief that all members of
each race possess features,
abilities, or qualities distinctive to that race, especially to differentiate
it as inferior or superior to another
race or races bias, a racial difference as a basis for prejudice,
discrimination, or hostility the idea
that a person's race is
superior. For many, the world of sports is a place where none of the typical
issues of the "real" world could exist. Although there are disagreements, they typically revolve
around money rather than unimportant issues like poverty and homelessness. The participants appear to be beyond wealthy,
many are educated, and they speak
with authority. Many people also think that the realm of athletics serves as a
role model for racial relations in the rest of society.
From raised fists
at the 1968 Olympics to taking the knee: A history of racial justice
protests in sport
1)
At this year's
Tokyo Olympics, athletes
have more freedom
to express themselves.
2)
After demonstrating on the medal platform against
racial and social inequality, two Black athletes
were kicked out of the 1968 Olympics. Lori Latrice Martin, a professor of
sociology, outlines the background of
racial justice demonstrations in sports and how far we have come since the 1968 Olympics Six months after
the murder of Martin Luther King Jr., Jr., Tommie Smith and John Carlos accepted their Olympic gold in Mexico City
in 1968. They had won gold and bronze
in the 200-meter race, but neither man was wearing shoes at the moment. They
made a symbolic gesture of defiance
against social injustice as the US national anthem played by bowing their heads and raising gloved
fists The gloves represented Black-American unity and strength, while the black socks and absence of shoes reflected
Black-American poverty. They got death
threats after being kicked out of the Games. According to Carlos, "I
walked up there as a respectable Black man and said: 'What's going on is
wrong.'"
1 Discrimination in sports: 5 Types, 25 Solution
(posted by Annu Snook on may 9th, 2019)
2 Fighting Discrimination in sports
(European Parliament)
3 Different types of discrimination in sports and how to solve them (sports action)
(last visited 24/9/22)
4 Gender discrimination in sports (31ST January, 2020 by Adam)
5 The impact of the media on gender inequality within in sports (by EJ
Trolan on 16 November, 2013) (cited by 164)
Simone Biles, Sha’Carri Richardson, and How the
Olympics Failed Black
Women
The
Olympic Games, held every two years, promise to be legendary.
Sportspeople defy the odds, set
records, and do things that are difficult for most of us to fathom. The 2020
Olympics, however, have frequently
drawn negative attention due to the US Olympic Committee's and the IOC's mistreatment of athletes and
prejudice against Black women athletes in particular. From Sha'Carri Richardson's pre-Olympic
punishment for using legal marijuana to the International Federation's restriction on swim caps made
for Black people with natural hair to the decades longabuse, lack of responsibility, and disrespect for the mental
health of athletes, there have been many examples.2
ECONOMIC DISCRIMINATION
Discrimination
based on a person's ability to pay is known as economic discrimination. These variables include the accessibility of
jobs, pay, cost, the cost and accessibility of goods and services, and the quantity of capital finance available.
BLACK ATHLETES IN PROFESSIONAL TEAM SPORTS
Major League Baseball handed out $63 million in player incentives
between 1958 and 1969, or an
average of $281,800 per team per year. The first major league expansion took
place in 1961, the year of the
highest bonus year, and the average team spent $47OO on bonuses that year— more than their payroll for a typical
25-man squad! 4 Major League Baseball could not afford to overlook
the pool of talented black ball players,
who were available
at far cheaper initial expenses, due to escalating bonus fees. According to Pascal and Rapping's research, 20.7% of
the white players in the 1968
Baseball Register received bonuses in excess of $20,000. Only 8.6% of the black players received bonuses of that kind. Five
very talented Black players were signed for relatively meagre
bonuses " A black man named Orlando
Cepeda was signing
for
$500 during the same time that
Mike McCormick received a $60,00 incentive. Horace Stoneham, the owner of the Giants, paid $350 for
Jim Ray Hart's autograph, $60 for Willie McCovey, $60 for Felipe Alou, and $4,000 for Juan Marichal "
‘Women’s revolution’? New report reveals huge pay gap between
WWE’s male and female superstars
According to a recent Express article, there is still a sizable wage discrepancy between men and women
4 Simonn Biles. Sha’carri
Richardson, and How Olympic failed
Black Women (Jacquelyne Germain Communication Inter ACLU on 31st August 2021) (last visited this page 24/9/22)
5 From raised fists at the 1968 olympics to taking
the knee: A history justice
protest in sports (July 23, 2021)
*Here is what the male superstars *Here is what the female superstars
Brock Lesnar:
$12m Ronda Rousey:
$1.5m
John Cena: $8.5m Charlotte
Flair: $550,000
Roman Reigns:
$5m Nikki Bella: $350,000
Randy Orton:
$4.5m Alex Bliss: $350,000
AJ Style:
$3.5m Mickie James:
$3000,000
Seth Rollins:
$3m Natalya:
$3000,000
The Miz: $2.5m Asuka: $250,000
The Undertaken: $2.5m Becky Lynch: $250,000
Kevin Owens:
$2m Dana Brooke: $2000,000
Dolph Ziggler: $1.5m Bayley: $2000,000
Sheamus: $1m Lana: $2000,000
Jeff Hardy:
$1m Naomi: $180,000
Bray Wyatt:
$1m Carmella:
$120,000
Junder Mahal:
$900,000 Nia Jax: $1000,000
Kane: $900,000 Sonya Devilla: $1000,000
Big Show: $850,000 Mandy Rose:
$80,000
Samoa Joe: $800,000 Ruby Riott: $80,000
Ruev: $8000,000 Sarah Logan: $80,000
Matt Hardy: $650,000 Tamina: $80,000
As
can be observed from the research, only Rousey is a female celebrity who earns
$1 million, as opposed to 13 male superstars who do the same.3
Religion Discrimination
In sports, religious discrimination can take many different forms. If
they make the squad at all, athletes
may face harassment from rivals and teammates. Even less overt kinds of
discrimination, including not
making accommodations for each player's religious needs, can be detrimental.
It's possible that some athletes'
religions conflict with the conventional methods of doing things in the sports industry. For example, Muslim
athletes could not be allowed to interact with people of the opposing gender, such as staff or spectators, while Jewish
athletes might not be allowed to play on Saturdays. For athletes who practise religion,
sports clothing can be problematic. Inconsistent with their beliefs, sponsors' emblems on uniforms
may make players uneasy (e.g. tobacco,
alcohol, gambling). It's possible that uniforms are overly exposed. Athletes
should be able to don religious headgear according to sports clothing codes.
A
Maryland girl's basketball player who failed to provide "documented
evidence" that her hijab was
worn for religious reasons was made to miss her team's regional championship in
2017. The opposing coach in the
championship game claimed that the hijab was in breach of the rarely enforced regulation, despite the fact that
other coaches and officials had not expressed any worry about it throughout
the season
.
Disability Discrimination in Sports
Perhaps the least discussed type of prejudice in sports is the
discrimination towards people with disabilities.
People may exclude athletes with disabilities even if they are not
intentionally doing so because they
do not want to put in the extra effort to make accommodations for them. When it comes
to involving athletes
with impairments, sports organisations must offer a variety of possibilities.
The inclusion spectrum, which ranges from making no modifications to forming teams that are only comprised of people
with disabilities, should be taken into consideration. The greatest method to stop handicap
discrimination in sports is to inquire about the needs of players rather than assume. Additionally, it is
illegal to harass a family member or acquaintance of a person with a handicap or to bar someone from participating in
sports because of their affiliation with a person with a disability.
8 Women’s revolution? New report reveals
huge pay gap between WWE’s
male and female
superstar(Hindustan times updated
JAN 11, 2022) (last visited this page
25/9/22)
9 Economic discrimination
in professional sports
(By GW Scull 1973) (Last visited
this page 25/9/22)
10 Different
types of discrimination in sports and how to solve them (Last visited
this page 25/9/22)
Gutierrez V Newcastle Utd Disability Discrimination Case: The Wider Implications For Sport
The Player signed a new four-year agreement with the Club in September
2011 ("the Contract") after
initially joining the Club in July 2008. If the Player started 80 Premier League games during the four-year tenure, the Contract
had a condition that would automatically extend it by one year (the "Extension Clause"). Over a five-year
period, the Player was a consistent member of
the Club's first squad. The Player had testicular cancer, though, and needed
surgery to have his testicles
removed in the summer of 2013. After returning to the Club following his
treatment, he asserted that the Club
informed him within a few weeks that he
was no longer a part of their plans
and that he may look for another club. The Club claimed that the Player was
informed that he had no future with
the Club before receiving a cancer diagnosis and that this decision was made solely based on sports-related
factors. The Player had started 78 games at the conclusion of the Contract in June 2015, falling short
by 2 of the 80 needed to activate the Extension Clause. The Player said that his selection for first-team Premier League
games had been altered to keep the
Extension Clause from being invoked because of his disease. The Player further
alleged that after being diagnosed
with cancer, the Club had treated him less favourably. Furthermore, the Club had the option to renew the Contract
at their discretion, but they decided against doing so. At the Employment Tribunal, the Player filed a disability
discrimination complaint against the Club,
alleging that the Club had treated him differently because of his cancer
diagnosis. The Employment Tribunal decided in the Player's favour in April 2016.
LGBTQ Discrimination in Sports
Out On the Fields, the first-ever international study on the topic, finds
that the USA has the worst homophobic
attitudes in sports. LGBTQ athletes frequently endure physical violence, verbal abuse, cyberbullying, and exclusion from
team social activities. Also possible are homophobic insults or slurs from
rivals, opponents, and spectators.
Rene Portland, the former head coach of Penn State's women's basketball
team, provides a disturbing example
of homophobia in athletics. Portland said to the Chicago Sun-Times in 1986, "I
will not have it in my curriculum," when asked about homosexuality.
11 Religion or belief
discrimination ( 19 feb, 2020)
12 Racism and Religious
Discrimination in sports
13 Discrimination in sports: 5 types and 25 solution
(9 may, 2019) (By Anna Snook)
14 The religious playing
field (October 2016) (last visited
this page 26/9/22)
She continued by verbally abusing players who she believed to be lesbians and who did not act in
a "feminine enough" manner. Former player Jen Harris filed a
discrimination lawsuit against Portland
and the school's athletic director in 2005. Following an investigation,
Portland received a fine and
diversity education.
As the US Congress
contemplates enacting the Equality Act, LGBTQ discrimination in sports has recently made headlines. By passing
the bill, the Civil Rights Act would be updated to forbid discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
Opponents of the law are concerned about male athletes playing in women's
sports, though. They assert that allowing trans women to compete alongside
cisgender women will benefit trans athletes, despite
the fact that, if the new law
is approved, this would be
against the law.
Women athletes with disabilities who want to compete at the highest
levels of sport frequently experience double
discrimination because of their gender
and their condition. Being a woman and
having a disability puts your chances of surviving in the world of sports in a
kind of double peril because you have
obstacles from both the perspective of being a woman and from the perspective of having a disability, which exacerbates the issue. In order to succeed, they therefore
need additional institutional, legal,
and societal assistance, particularly when it
comes to the field of sport. Unfortunately, despite
many years, this problem has not yet been resolved.
CONCLUSION
This research paper's
conclusion tries to illustrate the various forms of discrimination present in the sports industry.
Even in the 21st century, despite numerous laws supporting justice and
equality, many players continue to experience prejudice
based on their colour, gender,
sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status.
The word count only permits
us to write so much, but there are innumerable people whose stories have not
yet been heard. As a society, we should work to lessen their suffering in order to promote both personal and
societal improvement. We shouldn't hinder their
development or support prejudice as
a crime.
15 Disability, sports and physical sports
(Department of economic
and social affairs
disability) (last visited
this page 26/9/22)
16 Gutierrez
V Newcastle Utd Disability Discrimination Case: The Wider Implication For Sport (Published on 5 March, 2016)
To combat
any type of discrimination, India
introduced the Anti-Discrimination and Equality Bill 2016 (ADE
Bill) in the Lok Sabha
REFERENCES
14)
Expert commentary and analysis on the latest issues and legal developments in the world of sport - LawInSport
16)
Supreme Court News, Latest India Legal News, Supreme Court Updates, High Courts Updates, Judgments, Law Firms News, Law School News, Latest
Legal News (livelaw.in)
17 Disability research review (Professor R.C. Richard Davison,
Professor Gayle McPherson)
18 Fighting discrimination in sports (European parliament) (last visited
this side 26/9/22)
19 LGBTQ Athletes and Discrimination in Sport (Penn State Law elibrary) (By Rebecca Mattson,
2018)
20 In the high court of judicature in madras (Live Law.in)
21 Discrimination in sports: 5 types, 25 solution (posted by Annu Snook on may 9th, 2019)
22 Different
types of discrimination in sports and how to solve them (sports action)
(last visited 26/9/22
23Federations are charged with the responsibility of handling all matters connected
to sports, with the exception
of general debates
under Articles 14, 15,
and 16 of the Indian Constitution.
Article Information
DISCRIMINATION IN SPORTS-BY Ananya Sachdeva & Anoushka Bhatnagar
Authors: Ananya Sachdeva, Anoushka Bhatnagar
- Journal IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
- Published 2022/10/22
- Volume 2
- Issue 7
About Journal
International Journal for Legal Research and Analysis
- Abbreviation IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
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