Playing nice: politics and apologies in women's sports

Abstract

This discussion of women's entry into the male-dominated world of sports chronicles the evolution of public attitudes and private ambitions from the 1950s to the present. The book identifies the intricacies of equality, difference and self-determination that have shaped women's participation in sport. Highlighting tennis, basketball and intercollegiate sports, the book explores the strategies which women have used to assert dual roles as athletes and women. The author finds that, in order to avoid negative stereotyping, the commonest strategy was and still is apology for taking an interest in sports. The book's epilogue covers the changing fortunes and future of women's sports in the 1990s, demonstrating that although the situation has improved significantly since the 1950s, there is still along road ahead.

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