| Nevena Dimitrova Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Studies with Ethnographic Museum, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences [nevenaddimitrova@gmail.com] | Download https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20964117 |
AGEING AND POWER IN SPORT: INTERSECTIONAL PERSPECTIVES ON WOMEN, AGEISM, AND GENERATIONAL STEREOTYPES: WOMEN IN RUGBY
Abstract:This paper examines how ageism and sexism intersect to shape the experiences, visibility, and value of women in sport, with particular attention to women in rugby. While male athletes often benefit from narratives of longevity, leadership, and accumulated expertise, women face early devaluation, intensified scrutiny of their ageing bodies, and structural barriers that shorten their athletic and professional trajectories. These dynamics are especially evident in rugby, a sport historically associated with masculinity, physical strength, and endurance, where women athletes frequently encounter gendered expectations regarding bodily appearance, performance, and age-appropriate participation. From a cultural perspective, women’s bodies are produced, monitored, and evaluated within shifting institutional and aesthetic frameworks, revealing how ageism in sport functions as a form of embodied governance. In rugby, where athletic value is closely linked to physical capacity and resilience, ageing female athletes frequently confront assumptions about decline that are not applied with the same intensity to men. Media and cultural narratives continue to construct female athletes through stereotypes and prejudices, privileging youth, attractiveness, and narrowly defined femininity while overlooking the expertise, leadership, and sporting capital accumulated with age. This paper argues that ageism in sport is not a biological inevitability but a socially constructed process that reinforces gender inequality. Through the example of women in rugby, it demonstrates how ageing is shaped by institutional practices, cultural narratives, and gendered expectations rather than by physical change alone. Addressing ageism in sport therefore requires an intersectional understanding of how age, gender, embodiment, and cultural narratives shape womens’ opportunities, recognition, and participation across the lifespan.
Keywords: ageism; women in rugby; generational stereotypes; sexism in sport.
- Declaration by Authors
- Ethical Approval: Approved
- Conflict of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
- Source of Funding: Project ‘Society, Sport and Integration’, funded by Bulgarian National Science Fund of the Ministry of Education and Science (contract agreement No. КП-06-Н75/14 from December 15, 2023).