CNN
—
Clothing is not just an item to keep you warm or cool, it also indicates status, shows defiance and even relieves anxiety.
For tennis legend Billie Jean King, clothing allows female tennis players to express their individuality through colors and patterns, a right she and the fledgling Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) fought for in the 1970s, when the white was ubiquitous as the color of sport.
Wimbledon still employs this stark all-white dress code, first implemented to camouflage sweat stains. These days, it also helps the SW19 Grand Slam maintain a sense of uniqueness relative to the Australian Open, French Open, and US Open, but arguably also reduces the individuality of the players.
Most pressingly, for menstruating female players it creates anxiety as to whether blood is visible on white clothing.
“My generation, we always worried because we wore all white all the time,” King tells CNN’s Amanda Davies. “And it’s what you wear underneath that’s important for your period.
“And we’re always checking to see if we’re showing. You get tense because we are artists first and foremost and you want whatever you wear to look immaculate, look great. We are entertainers. We take it to the people.”
Following the publication of King’s comments, reports appeared in the British media suggesting that Wimbledon would relax its all-white underwear rules for female tennis players.
In response to the reports, the All-England Tennis Club (AELTC) issued a statement to CNN on Tuesday saying: “Prioritizing women’s health and supporting female players based on their individual needs is very important to us, and we are in talks with the WTA. , with the manufacturers and with the medical teams on the ways in which we can do it”.
Tournament organizers had been under pressure to relax their strict dress code since Wimbledon this year when campaigners gathered at SW19 with signs reading “About time” and “Address the dress code”.”
It followed comments made by several women, including former Olympic champion Monica Puig and Australian tennis player Daria Saville, who spoke about the “mental stress” caused by the all-white dress code and “skipping periods” as a result.
Manufacturers are beginning to develop solutions even as the Wimbledon dress code remains in place, and Adidas told BBC Sport it had period-tested its women’s training products.
“You feel like you can breathe and not have to check everything every minute when you sit down and switch sides,” adds King, referring to wearing dark clothing underneath.
“So at least it’s been brought to the fore, which I think is important to discuss.”
In addition to the whites policy creating anxiety for players on his stint, King notes that it can be difficult for fans trying to tell players apart on the pitch.
“Nothing is worse in sports than when you turn on the television and two players are wearing the same uniform or the same clothing. It is awful. Nobody knows who is who.
“This is one of my favorite manias, I have been screaming for years. Have you ever seen any sport where people wear the same outfit on each side?
The fading taboo around menstruation is evidence of the progress made by women’s sport in recent years, a fight King has led for 50 years.
Two years ago, the Fed Cup, women’s tennis flagship international competition in which players compete as part of their national teams, changed its name to Billie Jean Cup King to honor her, and now the tennis great wears clothes to highlight the champions. this year’s event in a ‘winner’s jacket’ designed by renowned fashion designer Tory Burch.
Building on the tradition of the famous ‘green jacket’ worn by the winner of The Masters golf tournament each year, Burch designed a blue jacket for the winners of the Billie Jean King Cup in the hope that it would eventually become an icon. as iconic as its predecessor. .
Every stitch, every seam, and every inch of fabric is steeped in symbolism.
His color, “Billie Blue,” was chosen “because so many times throughout his incredible career, King has worn blue,” explains Burch.
Most famously, King walked onto the court to play Bobby Riggs in 1973’s “Battle of the Sexes” in a blue and menthol green gown, buttoned down the front and adorned with beaded detailing.
Her shoes were also blue, deliberately chosen to match her dress, stand out on the still new color television, and subvert gender stereotypes.
“The shoes and the color, everything is very important to me,” says King. “I always try to give meaning to what I wear.”
Since that momentous moment when King defeated Riggs 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 in front of an estimated 90 million global television audience, gender equality in and out of sport has progressed, albeit faltering at times. , stumbling backwards or sideways a few steps.
That same year, the US Open became the first of the Grand Slams to offer equal prize money to men and women, while the US Supreme Court gave women the right to have an abortion in Roe vs. . Wade, although this decision was overturned in June.
“Every generation, they get further and further away from the start of the fight,” says King. “I think history is very important because the more you know about history, the more you know about yourself.”
King hopes that the current generation of female tennis stars, those who will wear her specially designed jacket as Billie Jean King Cup winners, will pick up the slack.
“But the most important thing about [history] it’s that it helps you shape the future and that’s what I want these young women to do. Now it is your job to step up, lead and shape the future.”
And inside the jacket, to remind Billie Jean King Cup champions of the ‘fight’ and their place in it, is a message from King herself.
“Congratulations on winning the 2022 Billie Jean King Cup,” King reads aloud. “As a member of the first Fed Cup-winning team in 1963, I dreamed of sharing this title with women like you.
“Tory Burch shares my passion for tennis and women’s empowerment. We designed the Champion’s Billie Blue Jacket to symbolize your incredible victory and how far women have come in sports. Together, we can make equality a reality. Billie Jean King, be bold.”
Source: news.google.com