August is a complicated month for me. In the first few weeks, I head to Cape Cod, spending time with family and friends on the beach, enjoying sunny days and increasingly brisk nights, eating lobster rolls and watching meteor showers. As the month ends, it’s back to school, which for me means back to the office and the classroom, the flurry of writing syllabi and prepping for courses mitigated by the joy of reconnecting with students and colleagues.
This August was particularly frantic, with a spectacular World Cup down under that demanded early wakeups and late to beds, saw a whole new cast of characters hit the big show, gave us heroes in squads from Jamaica and Morocco, and a new champion, Spain, with players who had to battle their own federation to claw their way to the very top.
That victory, of course, was quickly seized by Luis Rubiales, head of Spain’s football federation, who forcefully kissed Jenni Hermoso during the trophy ceremony without her consent. What has unraveled in the days since is depressing and frustrating, galling and infuriating, and yet for anyone who follows women’s sports, not at all surprising. Rubiales offered an apology that included a refusal to step down in response to what he deemed “false feminism,” a statement that brought cheers from many of his colleagues. Hermoso responded with a lengthy statement, in which she called him out for lying about what went down, saying that she “felt vulnerable and a victim of an impulse-driven, sexist…act without any consent.”
Spain’s entire World Cup coaching staff resigned. FIFA — yes, FIFA — suspended Rubiales. Rubiales’ mother — and stay with me here — has hunkered down in a church, claiming a hunger strike in response to the way we have all treated her son. Alex Morgan and a host of other players across the globe offered statements of support for Hermosa and condemnation for Rubiales.
The saga continues, making clear — again — what women have to do even at the most elite levels of the game to make things work. This World Cup broke records and made history all over the place — attendance, viewership, merchandise, and — mostly importantly — the number of new teams posting wins on the board. And yet instead of cheering and glowing and celebrating, we are talking about Luis Rubiales and seeing yet again how at the very core of any change and, dare I say, progress being made, ideas of women’s equity, women’s very right to be sitting at the table safely and securely, are always under fire.
While the aftershocks of the World Cup provide immeasurable fodder for my classroom, they do not bring much joy. Yet there is joy to be found, always. Take a look at the incredible floor routine of gymnast Simone Biles in her return to the sport she not only dominates, but defines. I can’t count how many times I’ve watched the front layout full step out that opens her second tumbling pass, which sets up a head-scratchingly awesome double-double that she lands as if there are magnets on her feet and the mat is made of metal. While that record-setting eighth national crown on her head does not erase the dark and brutal legacy of Larry Nassar on Biles and many other athletes, she has forged a future on her terms.
I felt that joy Monday night, too, opening day at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, where 50 years of pay equity was celebrated with the likes of Michelle Obama and I watched, my tennis-player daughter sitting next to me, Coco Gauff combat the obvious (and kind of dodgy) gamesmanship of her opponent, turning what should have been an ordinary first round U.S. Open match into a drama-soaked marathon that took over the night. It felt good to be amidst thousands willing Coco to persevere, wanting her to land on top. But waking up the next day to the debates and criticisms, the picking apart of Coco’s plea to the chair umpire to adhere to the rules regarding the pace of play, well…that’s when the joy starts to die and we remember all over again: Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but backwards and in high heels.
Amy Bass is professor of sport studies and chair of the division of social science and communication at Manhattanville College. Bass is the author of ONE GOAL: A COACH, A TEAM, AND THE GAME THAT BROUGHT A DIVDED TOWN TOGETHER, among other titles. In 2012, she won an Emmy for her work with NBC Olympic Sports on the London Olympic Games.
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