When it was first announced that Serena Williams\u2019 \u201ccatsuit\u201d Roland Garros outfit would be banned in the future I couldn\u2019t help but question why. Three days on and I\u2019m still questioning it, how did Roland Garros even allow this to happen?<\/p>\n
The answer is we don\u2019t really know; all we do know is the President of the French Federation Tennis, Bernard Giudicelli, has called for players to \u201crespect the game\u201d whilst sharing the decision to ban similar outfits in the future. <\/p>\n
A lot doesn\u2019t add up though. Let\u2019s just hypothetically say this outfit was “disrespectful” (whatever that means), how was it even approved in the first place? Even then, why wasn\u2019t anything done to rectify the situation before her second-round match? In 2013 after his first round match at Wimbledon<\/a>, Roger Federer was asked by Wimbledon officials to not wear orange soled shoes. A similar thing should have happened here. Instead, Serena Williams went on to make the second week without a word being said, until now, three months later out of the blue. <\/p>\n But here\u2019s where the bigger issue lies: how exactly was Serena Williams not respecting the game? Sure, the outfit was different, but what part of it wasn\u2019t respecting the sport? If we look at other sports, we see very similar women\u2019s outfits which cover the whole body in many such as swimming and cycling, just to name a few. <\/p>\n Even if we look at other outfits in tennis it\u2019s not too hard to find a whole bunch of others which raise far more eyebrows than Williams\u2019 Roland Garros outfit ever did. I mean, this isn\u2019t even the most different outfit she has ever even worn. You just have to look at something like her 2004 US Open<\/a> outfit to get that. A black Nike top outlined in studs combined with denim shorts and football socks<\/a>. If we\u2019re talking about disrespectful then maybe that\u2019s something an outfit that\u2019s closer to the word given the extremeness of its casual nature. <\/p>\n We\u2019ve even had American Bethanie Mattek-Sands, who\u2019s known for extravagant outfits, play with a fedora hat and a leopard print dress. These are items and designs you wouldn\u2019t see in any sport, not just tennis. Yet time and time again she\u2019s got away with most never being banned. <\/p>\n Serena Williams\u2019 own sister Venus has worn a number of outfits that have caused a stir over the years. Given all of this controversy is over Roland Garros banning the outfit, I\u2019ll mention Venus Williams\u2019 2010 attire for that very same tournament. It featured a black see-through lace dress and to many was very revealing; it even prompted cat calls. The dress was even described as “lingerie-inspired<\/a>,” not a sports attire. So the question is, like the other outfits I\u2019ve just mentioned, why weren\u2019t any of these banned? <\/p>\n Perhaps the answer lies in sexism. Tennis is by far the biggest women\u2019s sport worldwide, and whilst many of us wish that sex appeal wouldn\u2019t play a part, we all know it does. It was only a few years ago Wimbledon got accused of putting \u201cmore attractive\u201d female players on the bigger show courts. <\/p>\n In the modern game pretty much every female tennis player is wearing outfits which show a lot of skin, whether it be through sleeveless tops or miniskirts. Seemingly, no one has ever had an issue with this though; even when you take it up a notch, like the Venus Williams outfit I mentioned, tennis authorities don\u2019t seem to care. <\/p>\n Now when you do the opposite and cover up, like Serena Williams did this year, there is an issue. It almost gives the impression that they don\u2019t want women covering up. You can be as “disrespectful” as you want with your tennis outfit, but as long as you\u2019re revealing your body, all is good. It sort of comes across like beach volleyball used to be for the women, where long pants were banned as the sport is one of the major female sports which relies on selling itself on sex appeal.<\/p>\n