In a world where wearing what we want should be the least of our worries, one of the greatest tennis players, Serena Williams is facing the same problem.
She was seen wearing a black bodysuit, custom made for her by Nike in the 2018 French open.
The bodysuit is specifically made to prevent blood clots in her body. The reason she has chosen to wear this suit is that during the birth of her child, Serena almost died due to haematoma — or swelling of clotted blood in her abdomen.
“It feels like this suit represents all the women that have been through a lot mentally, physically, with their body to come back and have confidence and to believe in themselves. I definitely feel like it is an opportunity for me to inspire a whole different group of amazing women and kids.”
– Serena Williams
While she’s risking her health to continue playing the game, the suit has been banned by the French Open President, Bernard Giudicelli.
Introducing a new dress code to regulate uniforms, he said,
“I think that sometimes we’ve gone too far. It will no longer be accepted. One must respect the game and the place.”
A statement like this just proves that a woman’s health is not a priority but what she wears supposedly is.
Serena’s fans obviously weren’t happy with this development and expressed their disappointment on Twitter.
Hi @rolandgarros! You can know how much @serenawilliams “respects the game” by remembering that she has won 23 grand slams! You need to respect athletes and the #Tennis world by changing your sexist/sexualized remarks.
And #SerenaWilliams, YOU LOOK LIKE A WARRIOR QUEEN. pic.twitter.com/3ETUebJRDF— Amir Ashour (@AmirLemina) August 24, 2018
It is outrageous to know that instead of praising Serena for being back on the court after such a hard time with her health, the French Open President is banning her from wearing what she wants to.
A player should be able to wear whatever they are most comfortable in, especially if it is for health reasons.