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Another Year At Wimbledon, More Commentary On What Women Wear Playing Sport

Would any of the men playing at Wimbledon be treated the same?
Amy Heffernan
by Amy Heffernan
02 July 2019

Why, in 2019, should this still be an issue female athletes have to contend with? 

Another Wimbledon tournament and another opportunity for the injustices in sport to come to the fore. 

The tennis fashion police were back again with a vengeance at the All England Club yesterday, as it took just one match into the tournament for a (female) athlete's dress to become a point of conversation. 

The eighth seed, Elina Svitolina might have beaten her opponent, Aussie Daria Gavrilova in straight sets, but it wasn't her stellar tennis skill that made the headlines, it was her choice of outfit.

Responding to a comment suggesting that her outfit was "basic", Svitolina took issue with a fan's tweet that criticised her apparel sponsor, Nike for putting "minimal effort" into her dress.

Hitting Back 

Elina Svitolina has hit back at criticism of her dress on social media though, defending Nike and responding to the tweet to set the record straight.

The dress - not that is should need to be defended publically - while simple in design, features a lace skirt, with a pleat at the back that adds body to the skirt for extra mobility. Nike says the 'Slam Dress brings the sophisticated look of lace to the court.'


Responding to the criticism at the post-match press conference Svitolina said: 

“I love my dress. I think it was not fair. It's not fair for designers, because they put so much work into our kit. They put so much effort in it, and then to say something that it was, that there was no effort, I think it was not fair for them.

“I went actually to the headquarters where I saw all the guys working behind the scenes. It's the same, like, for the tournament, you know. We go to play the tournament, and we just play and we think it's just everyday thing that happens.

“But it's so much work that put into the tournament and everything going around us, so we have to appreciate this.”

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Not Unprecedented

Two years ago Venus Williams fell foul of the Wimbledon fashion police by sporting a pink bra, changing midway through her match against Elise Mertens. 

In 2015, Eugenie Bouchard was almost issued with a code violation for wearing a black sports bra, even though it was almost completely hidden.

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Totally understand that the famous venue has a long-standing tradition of a strictly-white dress code, but this latest sartorial drama just highlights the gender double standards in sport once again. 

Would any of the men at Wimbledon be criticised for not making enough of an 'effort' with their outfits? I think not. 

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Related: Gender, sport