Women’s shine at Olympics in taking medals and making headlines settles funding debate - Alice Soper

Rugby star Ilona Maher went viral at the Paris Olympics as the United States claimed bronze. Photo / Instagram

THREE KEY FACTS

• The International Olympic Committee’s claim of gender parity was exaggerated, with men having more events on offer.
• Women athletes from top nations, including the US and China, won the majority of their medals.
• New Zealand women won 15 of 20 medals.

Alice Soper is a sports columnist for the Herald on Sunday. A former provincial rugby player and current club coach, she has a particular interest in telling stories of the emerging world of women sports.

OPINION

These Olympic Games were heralded as the first time we witnessed “full gender parity on the field of play”. Unfortunately, this was marketing hyperbole. Men were offered five more events to compete in and certain sports such as water polo and football, still featured more men’s teams than women’s. But while the International Olympic Committee may have inflated their achievement, the success of women in Paris cannot be overstated.

Of the top five nations at these Olympic Games, three owe their success to their women. Twenty-six of the USA’s 40 gold medals were won by women, who also won more than half of their entire medal count. Behind them, China replicated this pattern. Chinese women brought home more gold than their men and were responsible for over half of their total haul. Australia also relied on their women to get it done, winning 13 of their 18 golds and 60% of their medals overall.

The women from New Zealand were in a league of their own, winning 15 of our 20 medals at these Olympic Games, including eight of the 10 golds. Dame Lisa Carrington herself was involved in more gold medal performances than our men secured in Paris.

If all of this doesn’t strengthen the case of investing more in women’s sport, I don’t know what will. It’s been some of the most unlikely of characters that have recognised this potential. Who would have thought it would be a rapper from the 1980s, that would go all in on women’s sports, with Flavor Flav, cashing in his “yeah boyyyy” to fund the US women’s water polo team. He followed this up by recruiting Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian to help him pay off the rent of Olympic discus thrower, Veronica Fraley.

It wasn’t just medals that were won by women at these games but also the headlines. There was the dominance of Simone Biles, Katie Ledecky and Carrington. The breakthrough of social media sensation Ilona Maher. The viral performance of Australia’s breakdancing Raygun. And the triumph of Imane Khelif, who overcame immense and unwarranted pressure, to win gold in her boxing division.

The legacy of these storylines has the potential to extend far beyond this pinnacle event. Biles is forcing a re-examination of mental health in sport. Raygun’s cult hero status is all but assured now that breaking will not return in 2028. Maher has opened up a whole new world of possibilities for her sport, off the back of her personality as much as her performance. Meanwhile, Imane Khelif has exposed just how nonsensical and damaging the so-called gender critical movement is to all women.

Then there were all of us, watching on at home. Engaging with the full schedule of events to discover new sports and champions. With a wider range on offer, we have a fuller picture now of what an athlete looks like. That just like men, women come in a variety of shapes and sizes. And that all of these athletes’ bodies represent the pinnacle of their sport. What a win that is, for all of us, in a world that too often tells us different.

As the glow of the games recedes and we get back to our normal sleep patterns, we must remember the lessons learnt over the past few weeks. That when provided the opportunity, our women have proven that they will meet the moment and deliver.

So next time you talk about limited resources, remember it’s our women that are the safer bet.