Women and Sport: the Paradox of Empowerment
- Selena
- Aug 28
- 2 min read
We often talk about gender equality and inclusion.We talk about strengthening women’s identity in a holistic way: empowerment programs, self-esteem initiatives, positive storytelling.
All of this sounds great.But reality tells us a different story: we are still far behind.
Every day the headlines show us women who are not treated as equals. And too often, it is other women who don’t feel equal, don’t recognize it, and don’t pass it on.
If we look at sport, the paradox becomes even clearer.
Sport should be the most meritocratic arena:if you are good, if you are talented, you win.And if you win, you grow in reputation, visibility, and financial reward.
Unfortunately, this rule applies only in the masculine form.For women, it doesn’t work that way at all.
🟣 The “impossible” motherhood of a padel champion
Carolina Navarro, former world No.1 and a legend of women’s padel, stated it clearly in an interview:
“When you are a professional padel player, motherhood is something impossible. We have contracts with sponsors that only pay if you compete. Those contracts do not continue when you become a mother. We receive no help of any kind. Players like Cata Tenorio or Vanesa Alonso were forced to give up competing, without any support from the circuit or from institutions.”
And she adds: sponsors drop you during maternity.As if becoming a mother were a problem, not a life choice.
What a waste.Of talent. Of reputation. Of investment.
🟣 The example of Allyson Felix: when a mother becomes a brand
The same thing happened in another sport, on the other side of the world.In 2019, Allyson Felix, one of the most decorated athletes in track and field history (11 Olympic medals, including 7 gold), publicly denounced her sponsor, Nike.
Why?Because when she announced her pregnancy, Nike offered to cut her pay by 70%.Because becoming a mother — in their eyes — made her “less performant.”
Felix refused.She spoke up, she fought back, and then she did something revolutionary:she created her own running shoe brand, Saysh, “designed for women, by a woman, who became a mother.”
And she won.On the track and off it.
🎯 The parallel with the workplace
The same thing happens every day in companies.How many professional women lose opportunities, bonuses, or promotions after maternity?How many are “dropped” — maybe politely, but still effectively — because they are considered “no longer available”?
The problem is not maternity.The problem is a system that doesn’t take it into account.That doesn’t provide protections. That doesn’t invest in continuity.That doesn’t see maternity as a value, but as a risk.
🔚 Conclusion
Until we change the system — in sport as well as in the workplace — empowerment will remain a beautiful word… but an empty one.
What we need are:
clear rules
courageous sponsors
contracts that protect maternity
evaluations based on results, not fears
Only then can we truly say that sport is meritocratic.And that talent — whether it belongs to a woman, a mother or not — is worth just as much as that of a man.
As PadelParties we like to make something to change the reality and to grow the women world.
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