This is really interesting! Something I've wrestled with in thinking about her is that her highlighting her femininity is not as subversive as it's made out to be. Yes, we don't often see women with her build and athleticism positioned as "feminine," and I don't see any issue with her choice to represent that. But we already live in a culture that celebrates feminine women, and because women's rugby is a sport that frankly many people associate with masculine, often queer women, it doesn't surprise me that the person who broke through is a deliberate rejection of that. I don't blame her, it's a societal thing, but it's something I'd love to see discussed more.
Yes! I feel like you summed up what I was struggling to say in this piece. No knocks against her — I appreciate what she's done and is doing for women's sports — but her methods aren't really revolutionary.
This is really interesting! Something I've wrestled with in thinking about her is that her highlighting her femininity is not as subversive as it's made out to be. Yes, we don't often see women with her build and athleticism positioned as "feminine," and I don't see any issue with her choice to represent that. But we already live in a culture that celebrates feminine women, and because women's rugby is a sport that frankly many people associate with masculine, often queer women, it doesn't surprise me that the person who broke through is a deliberate rejection of that. I don't blame her, it's a societal thing, but it's something I'd love to see discussed more.
Yes! I feel like you summed up what I was struggling to say in this piece. No knocks against her — I appreciate what she's done and is doing for women's sports — but her methods aren't really revolutionary.