GUIDELINES
The sexism is outrageous.
As Stanford coach Tara Vanderveer said in a statement: “The message that is being sent to our female athletes, and women across the world, is that you are not valued at the same level as your male counterparts.”
The NCAA apologized for the inequities, but the response rang hollow.
“We fell short this year in what we’ve been doing to prepare in the last 60 days for 64 teams to be here in San Antonio, and we acknowledge that,” Lynn Holzman, the NCAA vice president of women’s basketball, told reporters.
Holzman made it seem as if the organization did not have enough time to create a more equitable environment for the women. If that is true — and we have serious doubts since these issues have not arisen on the men’s side — the NCCA is guilty of sexism and incompetence, a sad commentary almost 30 years after Title IX banned sex-based discrimination in programs that receive federal money.
“If you’re not upset about this problem, then you are a part of it,” Prince said.
The NCAA upgraded the women’s weight room Saturday, three days after the Tiktok video. “Guess what, guys?” Prince asks in a later video. “We got a weight room, yeah?”
Prince and the other women in the tournament were appreciative, but it never should have come to this. She did the right thing in posting the video of the two weight rooms. The outrage she felt created outrage among millions of others throughout the country, and that anger led to change.
We hope the change is lasting. March Madness, for both men and women, is one of the greatest events in our sporting calendar, providing as much excitement as any other competition in the country. Maybe, one of these days, it will create as much enthusiasm for the respect and devotion it shows half the athletes on the courts.
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