Category: sport

2 Olympians caught my feminist attention this year

With the 2024 Olympic games coming to a close, I want to talk about 2 Olympians specifically. They didn’t make the medal podium, but they did make world wide history, or rather herstory. I confess that I didn’t watch the olympics this year. It would be like watching people rub in the fact that I can’t walk . But two women’s stories did jump out at me, and I just had to sing their praises.

First, I’d like to discuss Azerbaijan and archery and then Egypt and fencing. Two countries and two sports that don’t get much attention from the media, especially for the females in either sport.

This year, two women competitors overcame a large physical obstacle, being more than 6 months pregnant while competing for an Olympic medal 🏅. Both of these women had trained for years in order to get to the Paris games, and they weren’t about to let being visibly pregnant stop them. 

Azerbaijan ‘s Yaylagul Ramazanova was 6 and a half months pregnant while a competing archer. While she did well, she didn’t medal. But she has captured hearts worldwide. I can only imagine how much her center of gravity and balance were thrown off by the baby growing inside her. She has said that she felt her baby kick, just before she shot a 10,the highest score for a single arrow in the sport. Talk about moral support!

Archer, Yaylagul Ramazanova of Azerbaijan

Next up is Egypt’s Nada Hafez was 7 months pregnant while competing in her sport of fencing. Her opponents were fencing against two challengers ,so to speak. Nada is quoted as saying, “Our bodies can surprise us.”

Long gone are the days when, if a woman was pregnant, she needed to put her feet up and not lift so much as a finger. These women are proof that pregnancy shouldn’t stop you from achieving your dreams, no matter what they may be. These women are tougher than most of the male athletes at this year’s Olympic games and certainly tougher than any man who were lucky enough to have watched them competing in the 2024 Olympic games in Paris.

WELL DONE, LADIES AND 👏 👏 👏 👏 👏 👏 BRAVO! You’ve both won the gold medal of this feminist’s lifelong admiration!

Where are the men?

After the first week of Olympic competition, Canada has won a total of 12 medals, 8 bronze, 2 silver and 2 gold. The odd thing about this is that they were all won by women, with our swimmers shining above the rest. The number of medals won at this point in a summer Olympic games is about right for Canada, a country that traditionally does far better in the winter games, with both men and women dominating their respective sports. While the Canadian men have yet to collect any metal, the feminist in me is over the moon with pride and joy at the performances of these hard working female athletes. 

Bronze medal winners 

Swimming

Swimming

Canadian women’s rugby seven team celebrating winning bronze

Canada’s womens cycling track team takes home the bronze

Brianne Theissen -Eaton, bronze medalist in the women’s heptathalon

Silver medal winners 

Rowers Lindsay Jennerich and Patricia Obee show off their silver medals

Gold medal winners 

Rosie Maclennan kisses her gold medal won for trampoline

Medal leader, swimmer Penny Oleksiak won 2 bronze, 1silver and 1 gold for Canada

If we want to beat our total medal count of 18, from the 2012 games we need 6 more medals, so unless our men really step up next week, it looks like, this summer, in Canada, the fairer sex is also the stronger sex .

*** the day after this post was published, Canadian runner, Andre Degrasse won the bronze in the men’s 100 meter sprint. Well done!