Kit and body image affects girls' participation in sports, new study says
- Published
Howard helped England win a first Commonwealth Games gold for the women's hockey team last summer. Her research suggests skirts are a barrier to entry for some girls in sport.
Gendered sports kits - such as skirts - play a major role in teenage girls dropping out of sport, new research by England hockey player Tess Howard says.
Howard, 24, conducted the research while a student at Durham University.
It has already led to England Hockey adopting new inclusive playing kit regulations., external
"No person should be put off participating in any sport based purely on what the uniform requires them to wear," Howard said.
England Hockey's new rules, introduced last month, means female athletes can choose to wear shorts, skirts or skorts.
The change came after Howard's work was shared with the governing body.
Her study with more than 400 women is published in the peer-reviewed journal, Sport, Education and Society, on Friday.
It found 70% of them had seen girls drop out of sport because of sports kit or body image concerns.
Howard called the findings "truly alarming", claiming they highlight "the most underrated cause of low female sport numbers".
Previous research, external by campaign group Women in Sport suggests that girls drop out of sport in their teenage years at a higher rate than their male counterparts - with only 35% of girls 'very active' on a weekly basis, compared with 54% of boys.
The same research found that body image and periods and disliking sports kits or clothing all contributed to the drop-out rate.
"If people want to wear shorts or leggings playing basketball or tennis or gymnastics it does not matter," said Howard, who scored the decisive goal as England won Commonwealth gold last summer.
"Women's sport is on the rise - we are so proud of our successful female sporting teams; but think of all the girls we have lost to kit problems. It's not a girl issue, it's systemic in society and it's a simple fix: choice.
"The data shows simply expanding sports kit flexibility and choice increases comfort in sport and the likelihood of long-term participation.
"We need to create real choice for all individuals, which means protecting the freedom to wear long sleeves, leggings and head coverings."
She missed out on Tokyo 2020 because of an anterior cruciate ligament injury, and says it is her "dream" to go to the Olympics, which are in Paris next year.
"My dream is also an Olympics with the option to wear shorts or skorts," she added.
"That is a powerful statement of inclusion, belonging and evolution in women's sport."
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