Periods limiting participation
Nothing should stop women playing sport - period.
But a new study has revealed that menstrual cycles are among the leading reasons why women forgo playing sport.
The study, a collaboration between Victoria University's women in sport team and Share the Dignity, an Australian charity aiming to end period poverty, found 68% of women skipped sport completely due to their period, while 90% worried about leaking and 72% were anxious about their period while playing sport.
That is a rather large pool of people who are missing out on the chance to exercise recreationally, or as a competitive athlete, all because of something that is outside their control.
Yes, women can pay to go on contraception to manage, or even skip, their periods, but that is not a healthy solution, and why should women pay for that on top of the cost of period products?
The study, which surveyed 330 people, found the majority agreed sports facilities and their policies needed to recognise menstrual health as a fundamental right and provide free period products.
They launched the Bloody Good Idea initiative, aimed at providing free period products at sport and leisure facilities to help improve support for athletes who had their period.
From the people who had access to free products, about 50% had utilised them when they got caught out playing sport and no-one used them to add to their personal supplies.
Menstrual cycles can cause an array of issues for women during that time of the month, including cramps, digestive disorders, bloating and increased tiredness.
Periods have historically been a taboo topic to openly talk about, but the narrative appears to be shifting in the past 10 years.
After missing the podium in the 4x100m relay at the Rio Olympics, Chinese swimmer Fu Yuanhui frankly told reporters her period started the day before the race.
''That's why I feel very weak and tired, but this is not an excuse. At the end of the day, I simply did not swim very well,'' Yuanhui said.
United States double world champion footballer Megan Rapinoe has called periods ''as normal as breathing'', while her compatriot rugby star, Ilona Maher, openly told her TikTok followers she was taking 50 tampons to the Paris Olympics just in case, despite not expecting her period.
That language can help change the landscape of young women's perceptions of dealing with menstrual cycles in sport.
Israel marathon runner Lonah Chemtai Salpeter spoke about her cramps being so bad during the Tokyo Olympics she had to take a break mid-race, and New Zealand golfer Lydia Ko talked about her experience with menstrual pain and tightness during the 2022 Palos Verdes Championship.
''The younger me would say it's embarrassing, but now I don't think it is that embarrassing to say it any more because I'm not the only one, right?,'' Ko said.
And she is right.
We should be supporting our young women, and elite athletes, through whatever their sporting endeavours look like and eliminating barriers that could stand in their way.
More has been done in recent years, with many football and rugby clubs swapping white shorts for darker colours to ease their players' comfort at all times of the month, and much of that has been led by those on the field now.
The conversation around periods continues to evolve - and it needs to - and it needs to be kept at the forefront to fight for a fairer future for women to understand the fundamentals of their bodies when playing sport.
It is what they deserve - period.
kayla.hodge@odt.co.nz
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