If you have read the book Shoe Dog by Phil Knight you will have seen the image of former track coach Bill Bowerman – co-founder of Nike along with Knight – constructing and designing running shoes, looking like a madman in a laboratory. This was at a time in the late 1960s when people thought jogging was for weirdos.
Watching the growth of women’s sports throughout the last few years it’s really puzzling how companies are still on the back foot when it comes to tailor-made women’s gear.
Throughout the launch pictures of Lidl’s support of ladies football one thing was pretty evident – darker shorts are becoming more prominent on the field rather than an anomaly. It’s great to see the work being done to raise awareness about the menstrual cycle in recent years.
Some people, usually men, ask me what all the fuss is about with darker shorts. The truth is it’s very difficult to explain. Having no limbs and going out with my brothers routinely, you’d know the ones who’d be able to assist if, God forbid, you had a leak.
Irish Times Sportswoman of the Year Awards: ‘The greatest collection of women in Irish sport in one place ever assembled’
Two-time Olympic champion Kellie Harrington named Irish Times/Sport Ireland Sportswoman of the Year 2024
Pub staff struggled to keep up with giddy Shamrock Rovers fans who enjoyed every moment of Chelsea trip
Money a whole different ball game as NFL and GAA eye Croke Park game
Yet some of my brothers still cringe at the thought of it. I’d remind them it’s just blood, to which they’d go as white as a pair of GAA shorts and tell me “that’s enough”. I’m the youngest of five, and there’s a sister between my brothers and me – this shouldn’t be a new part of the body that occurs explicitly in limbless siblings.
The dark shorts are obviously a bonus. The thing is 51 per cent of the global population has experience or have experienced a leakage. In school, probably due to the fact I was shorter than everyone, I was the “checker”, the designated person who would go “you’re good”. Our school pants were grey, we were in a mixed school. It’s as close as you’ll get to David Attenborough going full anthropologist.
Girls, especially young girls, are still highly embarrassed by the whole thing. At an alarming rate young girls are dropping out of sports for a variety of reasons, but research has suggested it’s mainly down to their hormonal and body changes, causing girls to be uncomfortable and awkward about their physique. After all for years we were taught women’s bodies were only things to be looked at, rarely a machine that needs oil and fuel to perform and contribute towards a healthy lifestyle.
The dark shorts are a success, but the conversation needs to be moved towards other gear being tailored for women. At the Lidl launch Aishling Moloney spoke about the design of Gaelic Armour, a company that specialises in gear for men and women. Hip sizes are different, and foot shape and posture are radically different for women and men.
In the incredible documentary No Woman No Try, female rugby players spoke with genuine annoyance about how rugby shorts were usually men’s sizes, causing them to slip during scrums, tackles and mauls. Ruggette RFC was started by Stefania Evans, a player with Worcester Warriors Women, in response to the growing numbers of women playing rugby, and especially women who wanted to play in woman-sized gear.
Look at sports bras, for instance. My exercise is relatively low when it comes to impact, yet every yoga or pilates sports bra is designed for aesthetic purposes rather than its function – to keep my boobs in and to keep them safe while I’m trying to plank. I can’t tell you how many times my one asymmetrical-sleeved sports bra has literally made it look like I’m badly hiding bazookas in my chest.
Weirdly, it’s virtually impossible to get football boots for girls and women. Even weirder, I can actually buy a vegan football boot but not something tailor-made for girls. According to an article in the journal Sports Engineering, written by women with a vested interest in the women’s game, boots and balls are designed by men for men, which could contribute to stress fractures, blisters and other unnecessary injuries in women.
These may all seem like basic requirements, but it shows the issues that still exist. The people in charge don’t seem to understand or, far worse, don’t seem to care.
Making something that should be so simple so difficult is exactly the kind of hurdle that turns women away from sport.
