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Description
Highly skilled female athletes often find their achievements devalued and their performances judged as inferior to men. Thus, the cultural changes that truly move us towards the social inclusion of women in boxing are still to be achieved. This paper explores how gendered power dynamics impact on experiences of female boxers who are active and present in traditionally masculine boxing gym spaces. We draw on ethnographic data taken from eighteen months of field notes collected at two sites, twenty-seven voice interviews and eight video interviews collected using the principles of semi-structured interviewing. Thematic analysis of the data identified and developed three emergent themes relating to the complex nature of gender-power relations for women in the boxing gym: (i) insider-outsider relations, (ii) marginalising practices, and (iii) embodiment of gender. We explore how the elements of female gendered embodiment and social expectations impact on how girls and women who box experience practices of inclusion, exclusion, belonging and marginalisation in boxing gym environments. We examine how women experience boxing gym spaces considering the gendered nature of the social and cultural expectations and values that influence the production and reproduction of embodied gender-power. The paper will also highlight the significance of exploring and understanding the gendered character of space on the boxing gym and wider competitive arena to gain further understanding gender power and the themes identified.
