[2025.12.29] "The History of Masculinity in Sports (Part 3) — Moving Beyond the Gender Binary: Changing Views of the Body"

[yuzurujenn]

*machine translation, inaccuracies exist*

 

2025.12.29

 

Source: https://mainichi.jp/articles/20251229/ddm/010/040/024000c (paid article)

 

 

"The History of Masculinity in Sports (Part 3) — Moving Beyond the Gender Binary: Changing Views of the Body"

 

 

"To protect women’s sports"

 

World Athletics (WA) president Sebastian Coe has repeated this phrase at every press conference.

 

Starting this fall, WA has required genetic testing for participants in women’s events. The organization says it’s to ensure fairness in competition, but genes are the ultimate personal information. Why is there such insistence on strictly separating men and women?

 

Spoiler

I interviewed scholars, athletes, and people from various perspectives. Among them, the view that convinced me the most came from Naoko Yuge, a professor of Western gender history at Waseda University. She said, “When WA says it wants to ‘protect women,’ it sounds like it’s trying to protect male authority and status at the same time.”

 

Sports such as soccer, rugby, and track and field, which flourished in the UK around the 19th century, are called modern sports. Initially, women were excluded, and these sports developed as a culture to teach “manliness” through courage, discipline, and physical training. The gender binary that separates men and women has long been considered a line that cannot be crossed.

 

In her recent book, "Introduction to the History of Masculinity", Yuge reveals how norms of “manliness” and perceptions of the male body have changed over time.

 

For example, in Germany in November 2024, the Self-Determination Law was enacted, allowing people to change their legal gender and name based on self-declaration, without a professional diagnosis. According to the German government, over 16 countries, including Argentina and Belgium, have similar laws.

 

Yuge notes, “The Olympics may not recognize this principle of self-determination,” but adds, “The model based on the gender binary may lose its former influence and be replaced by a new model of gender recognition. That era may be approaching.”

 

As the concept of “masculinity” shifts, Yuge places hope in expressive sports like figure skating and dance.

 

Kei Okada, a professor of sports sociology at Ritsumeikan University who studies sports from gender and sexuality perspectives, is particularly interested in figure skating.

 

From the late 18th to early 19th century, when modern sports emerged, figure skating was a graceful pastime enjoyed by upper-class men on parks, frozen ponds, and lakes. It later spread to the middle class, and with the exception of top athletes, it became a sport dominated by women (Wray Vamplew, A History of Sport, Harashobo).

 

"Figure skating is a unique kind of competitive sport. It began as a men's sport, but as it evolved into a performance-based sport, women became more likely to excel. However, because it was perceived as a feminine sport, prejudice in North America and elsewhere that men who competed were gay became stronger."

 

Concerned about declining TV ratings and a decrease in active competitors, the Canadian Skating Federation launched a campaign in 2009 to highlight the strength and toughness of figure skating.

The campaign's aim was to attract fans of ice hockey, which is popular in North America, but it drew widespread criticism because the federation's vision of a "macho" image isn’t the only way to define masculinity. Reflecting on this, in 2022 the Canadian Skating Federation changed the entry rules for pairs and ice dance events in domestic competitions from "man and woman" to simply "two people."

 

In recent years, Asian skaters, including those from Japan, have been making waves. In the men's singles at the Winter Olympics, Yuzuru Hanyu won back-to-back gold medals in Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang 2018. At the 2022 Beijing Olympics, Nathan Chen (USA), whose parents are Chinese immigrants, won. Including two Japanese skaters, the podium was dominated by Asian skaters.

When asked why Asian skaters are so successful, Okada pointed to cultural factors surrounding race, gender, and sexuality. "In Japan, there’s less prejudice against certain sports than in North America, which works to their advantage. "

He also highlighted the differences in how "masculinity" is portrayed in figure skating versus track and field.

"Track and field takes pride in being at the very heart of modern sports. It’s a type of competition built to favour the male body. Figure skating, on the other hand, came to be seen as feminine because it incorporates aesthetic expression. The question is whether it will continue as a modern sport as it is, or take on new values and develop as an expressive sport. Perhaps what separates these two paths is one’s attitude toward masculinity."

 

A New Wave in Figure Skating: Freedom of Expression

 

What do people involved in figure skating think? Tatsuki Machida, associate professor at Kokugakuin University and fifth-place finisher in the men’s singles at the Sochi Winter Olympics, mentioned the name of one skater. 

John Curry, the men's gold medalist at the 1976 Innsbruck Winter Olympics in Austria. He demonstrated techniques incorporating ballet techniques, and is said to have elevated skating from a competitive "sport" to an "art."

 

During a time of intense discrimination against homosexuality, his being gay was reported in the media, but he did not back down. He later developed AIDS and passed away in 1994 at the age of 44. His achievements have since been reassessed through a documentary film released in 2018 (2019 in Japan).

Machida says, "You could say he was the first person in the figure skating world to break the idea that male skaters should be masculine. Of course, there are skaters like Johnny Weir (who came out in his autobiography), but it was an era far tougher than that."

 

In the film, Weir says, "He made me who I am. The me who can be myself on the ice."

 

Machida views figure skating positively, saying, "It is becoming a sport where each skater can freely pursue their ideal form of expression. For men in particular, the range of expression is very diverse, and it seems to have expanded dramatically in recent years."

Last summer, to commemorate its 100th anniversary, the International Sports Press Association (AIPS) announced the top 10 men's and women's athletes in a survey titled "The Greatest Champions of the Century, 1924-2024." Topping the men’s list was former world boxing champion Muhammad Ali, while tennis’ "absolute queen" Serena Williams claimed the top spot for women. Hanyu was the only Japanese athlete to be named, coming in at sixth place among the men's athletes.

Looking at the 10 male athletes, I was struck by their diversity. They range in race, physique, and appearance. Yet, throughout history, men have undoubtedly confronted the concept of "masculinity," whether they wanted to or not.

 

The three-volume French historical work "The History of Masculinity" has different covers for the original and Japanese editions. The Japanese edition of Volume 3, titled "The Crisis of Masculinity?" features Henri Rousseau’s "Men Playing Football." It depicts four mustachioed men engrossed in a game, appearing both comical and strangely unsettling. Its supervising translator, Suguru Minemura, explains the choice:

 

“The odd horizontal stripes on the figures’ clothing almost resemble prison uniforms. Masculinity seems like an outdated, ridiculous relic, yet it lingers like a ghost. Perhaps men might be trapped within this eternal cage of masculinity.”

 

Will sports still be selecting champions in separate men’s and women’s categories 100 years from now?

 

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Image caption:

He won gold medals in the men's singles at two consecutive Olympic Games (2014 and 2018). He is also active in charitable activities, such as supporting the reconstruction efforts following the Great East Japan Earthquake, and remains extremely popular even after turning professional.