Discrimination has been a major challenge that has threatened to cripple the ideals and purpose of sports in many countries across the world. These prejudices occur when an individual or group of people are treated unfairly based on their age, race, religion, sex or social status. In the sporting world, there has been a large number of cases of mistreatment of sportsmen, technical staff and the spectators. In the number of years, I have been to local and major sporting events, I have experienced many forms of discriminatory actions on various levels. The most common forms of discrimination are;
Racism
Racial discrimination in sports occurs when athletes, technical staff and fans are given unfair treatment based on their skin colour. This happens in countries with a multicultural society. The largest recipients of such treatment are from the race whose colour is assumed to be inferior. In the United States and Europe, I have experienced various forms of prejudice towards the athletes of African American origin both on a regional and national level. In the U.S, the discrimination and stereotyping of African American sportspeople are rampant on both the youth league and professional sporting events (Beamon, 2014) . From the historical background, the black community has been underrepresented in many fields in terms of employment and access to education. The problem persists and in many instances and I have witnessed cases of use of racial slurs against players and fans, misrepresentation in sports clubs management and inequality in payment among remuneration.
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In youth leagues, African American students in predominantly White institutions (PWI) have borne the brunt of racial discrimination from their fellow White students, tutors, and administrators. There has been a lower number in admission and graduation of black students especially the males and this has contributed greatly to their underrepresentation. The management of such clubs has greatly favoured the White with few African Americans in those boards. Some of the professors PWIs view the male African American athletes as having inferior scholarly prowess due to their overindulgence in sports. In the professional league, there has overrepresentation and underrepresentation in various sports. This is due to the categorization and stereotyping of different games by American society. In basketball teams, there is a high number of Black players and fans over their population percentage. Basketball has been for long being associated with African Americans. In the American Football League (AFL), the African American players are highly discounted. During major sporting events, players of colour have been subjected to derogatory name-calling by fellow fans and players from the opposing side and in some cases, their side.
Sexism
This is a prejudice that is passed to a person based on his/her sex or gender. The discrimination is mostly directed towards women. As most games have been male-dominated, women and girls have faced unfair treatment often receiving derogatory reference, demeaning and unequal representation. Unlike other forms of discrimination in sports, sexism is given little attention as these found discriminating against women hardly or face no consequence. The problem has been a major concern in sporting events in almost all countries around the world. The first form of discrimination women and girls face is the stereotype that they lack mental and physical toughness and strength as compared to their male counterparts (Fink, 2016) . Therefore women involved in sports are seen as bypassing their mandate whose roles include household duties. There have been cases of fans, commentators using sexist terms against women and describing them using obscene terms based on their physical appearance. Another issue that emanates from sexual prejudice is the poor representation of women in the management and ownership of sports teams. There is a negligible number of women serving as coaches, managers, and technical staff. A number of those working in those clubs have reported mistreatment by their male counterparts or being selected to those positions based on their physical appearances. Categorization of games has also contributed to the fuelling of sexism in sports where some form of sporting activities are deemed fit for either male or female gender. Women venturing into male assumed sport or men participating in games deemed reserved for female gender are seen to be out of place (Lee & Cunningham, 2016) . Lastly, there has been a little number of organizations that were willing to sponsor female sporting activities or clubs. Many see the little need to offer sponsorship due to the low number of spectators and viewers of such events.
Conclusion
Discrimination in sports has been rife for many years across the world. The most common forms of prejudice are racial discrimination and sexism. This has greatly contributed to the racial and gender composition and structure of players, management and viewership of different teams and sports. It has also led to categorization where different races and gender identify with different games. Other forms of discrimination are based on sexual orientation and social status. All forms of discrimination have an effect of hindering an individual from exploring their full potential or realization of sports goals.
References
Beamon, K. (2014). Racism and stereotyping on campus: Experiences of African American male student-athletes. Journal of Negro Education . https://doi.org/10.7709/jnegroeducation.83.2.0121
Fink, J. S. (2016). Hiding in plain sight: The embedded nature of sexism in sport. Journal of Sport Management . https://doi.org/10.1123/jsm.2015-0278
Lee, W., & Cunningham, G. B. (2016). Gender, Sexism, Sexual Prejudice, and Identification with U.S. Football and Men’s Figure Skating. Sex Roles . https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-016-0598-x
