2023-10-25 12:18:39
If we look back years in the calendar, women were excluded from practicing sports. Now, not only are they part of it, but they are emerging as references and leaders of change. One of the athletes who had to fight, and continues to do so, to achieve a place is Laia Palau (Barcelona, 1979). The former basketball player, current sports director of Girona and team leader in the national team, tells EL PERIÓDICO the number of stones that are in the way.
Where is women’s sport at?
I always make a connection between what women’s sports are and the view of society, because they are things that go hand in hand. The moment we begin to look at women as active, important and egalitarian characters in society, women will gain importance. We are in a moment of: “Hey, we are here, we realized!” There is a demand from the women’s community and what we have to achieve is for men to feel involved…
There is a notable evolution of the space that women occupy in the world of sports.
There are two things here. One is the space they give us and the other, which I always attribute a lot to the responsibility of women, is the space that we want to assume. We should have the same freedom of opportunities, but if women don’t want to put themselves in the same starting box… What do you think, that guys don’t compete with each other? Of course they do.
Has the women’s Barça served to attract the attention of many people and move everything forward?
The moment of women’s football has nothing to do with that of women’s sports. Many people think that we are much better. Ok, yes, but what happens with the women’s Barça is a mirage and is not a reflection of women’s sport. I tell you this because I am in this office every day, with all these people who have been here for a thousand years, and it is very difficult to get through this. In the consumer society that we have set up there is no room for everyone, it is very difficult to value the product. Now we are in a moment where I think there is an intention, but it still costs a lot.
What are the factors that influence the sale of the product?
It also depends on how the media treats it, since you are the ones who give the information and you are the ones who say what is important. If we give it value, treat the product with love and want to sell it well and do not really fall into paternalism, we will achieve a future with a little more hope.
Do you think that it still depends too much on the initiative of journalists, athletes and sports managers to make the product visible?
The world is made of private decisions, this is how it is. Everything we build is because there is someone who says: “I want it.” It depends on each person’s sensitivity. Everything is gears that have to be made. There are more and more people convinced. I see the uncles’ speeches now and I see how things have changed, because there are so many of them that there are many things that they no longer say. There is an evolution. I see how the generations rise and their mentality is different, absolutely different. I think there are changes, but then you look at reality, the real world, and you say: ‘Dude, no, there is still a long way to go.’
When women can only be athletes, will we have taken the key step?
Man, of course, professionalism. We have to start here. Professionalism is also your responsibility, how you approach your job. In addition to being better paid, having the best conditions or not, it is your way of working. And I believe we have this. I don’t know, I feel super professional. It would be very good to have normal working conditions, it would be ideal to have an agreement, to be regularized and also with the issue of pregnancies… All these issues that surround women and that we are not clear about at all because no one has ever asked them. case, nor has anyone ever been interested, because perhaps we had not arrived at this moment. The other day I was closing a conference on the influence of periods on athletes and I told him so. It seems super strong to me that we are now debating this. Nobody has stopped to think until now and, since we have never paid attention to it, I have ignored it my entire life.
The period, pregnancy, postpartum, opportunities after withdrawal… Many more debates open up as we progress.
The topic of pregnancy is very tricky, for example. Obviously, a woman has to have the right to have a child whenever she wants and she has the freedom to do so, but it is clear that this, at least in that year, will affect her performance as a player. The ideal would be for us to have a legal framework, somewhat regulated. We live in constant precariousness and it would be nice if there was a network underneath.
Does women’s sport have to use men’s sport as a reference or does it have to build its own path?
Are we sure that we want to repeat patterns of what has been done until now? Is this what we need? Do salaries really have to be this and do we have to go and collect that? Do you have to go and compete with the guys the way you compete with the guys or when there are a few of us, many of us, can we really change the way? We think about our own idiosyncrasies and we think, where we fit best in this society. Now there is general job insecurity, which is why we always have to go to society first and then to particularity.
What future do you predict for women’s sports?
I hope it’s here to stay, that it’s not just putting the foot down. There must be this attitude of saying: “Holy shit, don’t wait at home to see if it works out for you.” We have to go, promote, raise our voices. The fun is trying, well, to be in the places to be able to contribute your personality. In the end, what I’m telling you is that private initiatives are what build things, and if we don’t want to put ourselves in these places of change, of generating things, then we won’t generate them.
The world of sports is masculinized and, in most cases, it is sexist. And this is one of the main struggles in women’s sports.
Machismo, like racism, is a lack of general vision, awareness, education and lack of respect for others. There are many people living together in the world and we do not have to consider ourselves more than anyone else. Not only can we judge sexist and misogynistic behavior, but the people who have to occupy positions that represent values such as those of sport are qualified to do so. Among all of us we have to put leaders, not those who have to set the example, people who have a minimum of presentation, intelligence, know-how, respect, dignity.
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Is fighting inherent in women’s sports?
The demands are very important, especially today, when we live in a very globalized world and where it seems that everything is accepted. I don’t know if there is much room for subversion. We have to have the capacity to criticize and at certain times we have to have the strength and voice to always claim with respect and intelligence.
#long #reality