Comments on: World Man Cup http://www.myhusbandbetty.com/2010/06/22/world-man-cup/ helen boyd's journal of gender & trans issues Wed, 08 Feb 2012 01:17:33 -0500 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 By: Leah B http://www.myhusbandbetty.com/2010/06/22/world-man-cup/comment-page-1/#comment-64058 Leah B Wed, 23 Jun 2010 02:30:06 +0000 http://www.myhusbandbetty.com/?p=10385#comment-64058 I can't vouch for whether tryouts are open, but a world cup soccer player is going to be in that top 1%, or less, physically speaking. Draw the bells curves of various physical measurements between men and women and I'll bet there's little intersection. Take running speeds, for instance. In Olympic sprints and runs, the Gold-Winning women often have speeds lower than the men in last place. And they're doing the exact same thing. Hip shape and musculature play a large part in this (or so I've read). Measures of upper body strength show similar results. Both of these are important in soccer. For some positions, height matters as well (Keeper, center midfielder, strikers to a lesser extent). This isn't to say that there aren't potentially very exceptional women who could compete well on a high-level team, but the odds don't seem likely. Nonetyheless, if the tryouts are closed, that's a problem. It would be amazing to see a woman break through. I can’t vouch for whether tryouts are open, but a world cup soccer player is going to be in that top 1%, or less, physically speaking. Draw the bells curves of various physical measurements between men and women and I’ll bet there’s little intersection. Take running speeds, for instance. In Olympic sprints and runs, the Gold-Winning women often have speeds lower than the men in last place. And they’re doing the exact same thing. Hip shape and musculature play a large part in this (or so I’ve read). Measures of upper body strength show similar results. Both of these are important in soccer. For some positions, height matters as well (Keeper, center midfielder, strikers to a lesser extent).

This isn’t to say that there aren’t potentially very exceptional women who could compete well on a high-level team, but the odds don’t seem likely. Nonetyheless, if the tryouts are closed, that’s a problem. It would be amazing to see a woman break through.

]]> By: cleoofthefbi http://www.myhusbandbetty.com/2010/06/22/world-man-cup/comment-page-1/#comment-64056 cleoofthefbi Tue, 22 Jun 2010 21:02:39 +0000 http://www.myhusbandbetty.com/?p=10385#comment-64056 There is a Women's World Cup that has a similar format.... (http://www.fifa.com/womensworldcup/index.html)... though it has not been going as long and involves fewer teams at present (16 rather than 32). It takes place every 4 years (next one, Germany, 2011), and was in the USA in 2003. I wouldn't argue it's 'equal' on all the criteria you mention; it gets a much lower level of attention in the mainstream and sports media worlds, for one), but it does exist. There is a Women’s World Cup that has a similar format…. (http://www.fifa.com/womensworldcup/index.html)… though it has not been going as long and involves fewer teams at present (16 rather than 32). It takes place every 4 years (next one, Germany, 2011), and was in the USA in 2003. I wouldn’t argue it’s ‘equal’ on all the criteria you mention; it gets a much lower level of attention in the mainstream and sports media worlds, for one), but it does exist.

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