We applaud ESPN's progress in making the X Games more inclusive and detail what needs to be done to ensure further equity in the future.
By Terri Lakowski
Published: January 30, 2007
Over the past year, ESPN has taken several steps to make both Summer and Winter X Games more inclusive and equitable for women and for athletes with disabilities. Change takes time, especially when there are financial implications like the cost of adding events and equalizing purses, but progress is being made on all fronts and applause is deserved.
“Thumbs Up” for increasing participation for individuals with disabilities: For the first time, at Winter X 11, the X Games featured a medaled competition for individuals with disabilities—mono skier X. The event is modeled after skier X and snowboarder X and features male and female sit-skiers with disabilities racing alongside one another while strapped to an aluminum frame on a single ski.
More to do to increase representation of women and the purse prize awarded in mono skier X: Mono-skier X, a co-ed competition, only featured two women athletes, compared to 14 male athletes. Additionally, unlike the other Winter X events, in which the purse prize ranged from $40,000-$50,000, the total purse for mono X was only $30,000. While ESPN got it right in taking a lead in offering competition to individuals with disabilities, it must also be cognizant that this opportunity should be equally open to women as men, treated comparable to the competitions for individuals without disabilities and award the winning athlete top dollar.
“Thumbs Up” for narrowing the purse gap for men and women in the Winter Games and Summer Games:
From Winter X 10 to Winter X 11, for the events in which both men and women competed, (skier X, skiing superpipe, snowboard slopestyle, snowboarder X and snowboard superpipe), the gap in purse prize shrank from $43,000 to $7,500. In Winter X 10 events women received 45% or $213,500 of the total purse allocated for those events, while in Winter X 11 women received 49% or $249,000. The biggest increase in purses for women in Winter X 11 came in skiing superpipe, where the purse increased by $39,000.
From Summer X 11 to Summer X 12, for the events in which both men and women competed, (skateboard vert, skateboard street and wakeboarding in X 11 only), the gap in purse prize shrank from a $212,725 to $151,000. In Summer X 11, women received 18% or $60,250 of the total purse allocated for those events, while in Summer X 12 women received 25% or $74,000 of the total purse. The biggest increase in purses for women in Summer X 11 came in skateboarding street and vert, where the total prizes increased by $37,000 and $30,500, respectively.
More to do to reduce the gap in purse prizes for men and women. ESPN has made strides in the right direction by increasing the purse prizes for women in the Summer and Winter X Games; however a significant gap in purses remain—especially in the Summer Games, where women received $151,000 less than the men. It is the position of the Women's Sports Foundation that professional male and female athletes should receive equal purses when they are participating in the same competitions. How would the public react if there were higher purses for white athletes than athletes of color? Sex discrimination is no different than race discrimination.
More to do to increase participation opportunities for women in both the Winter and Summer X Games. Instead of expanding participation opportunities for women in the X Games, the participation opportunities for women have remained relatively stagnate, and in fact, have slightly decreased in the past two years. Women are still not represented in all of the sports and events in the X Games despite the fact that they are willing and able to compete.
In Summer X 11, women comprised 21 or 12% of the 172 athletes competing. In Summer X 12, the number of women competing decreased to 15 or 9% of the 170 athletes. Of the five sports offered in Summer X 12, women competed in only two: skateboard and rally car racing; and of the 17 events offered, women competed in only three: skateboard vert, skateboard street, rally car racing. Women did not compete in three sports: BMX with five events, moto X with four events and surfing with one event.
In Winter X 10, women comprised 86 or 34% of the 254 total athletes and in Winter X 11, women comprised 88 or 31% of the 280 total athletes. In Winter X 11, of three sports offered, women competed in two: ski and snowboard; and of 14 events offered, women competed in six: skier X, ski superpipe, mono-skier X, snowboard slopestyle, snowboarder X and snowboard superpipe.
ESPN has embarked on the right path and has made progress towards improving gender equity in the X Games. However, this progress must continue before the principles of equal participation opportunities and equal treatment of men and women are fully recognized. Sports are too potent a force in society and our media culture to ignore. The implications of unequal treatment and opportunity extend beyond the playing field. When our sons and daughters watch a national network telecast on ESPN and see the most celebrated female athletes valued less than their male counterparts, they are learning to believe that it is okay that females are less respected and less rewarded in our society. We are promulgating values for generations to come; we must be sure that the accepted values are acceptable ones.