{"id":933,"date":"2015-12-07T23:58:58","date_gmt":"2015-12-07T23:58:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/?p=933"},"modified":"2015-12-07T23:58:58","modified_gmt":"2015-12-07T23:58:58","slug":"why-tyson-furys-sexist-and-homophobic-comments-make-him-unfit-for-bbc-sports-personality-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/?p=933","title":{"rendered":"Why Tyson Fury&#8217;s sexist and homophobic comments make him unfit for BBC Sports Personality of the Year"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>By Helen Owton<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>One could be forgiven for being under the misapprehension that the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/sport\/sports-personality\/34727935\" >BBC\u2019s Sports Personality of the Year accolade<\/a> should be about more than a sportsman or woman\u2019s exploits on track, field, court or ring. The clue\u2019s in the name: \u201cpersonality\u201d. Most of us, I would think, would expect that the honour should be bestowed on someone whose achievements and bearing have struck a particular chord with the public, and have elevated their sport beyond the physical achievement. Apparently not.<\/p>\n<p>I have to declare an interest here. I am among the 77,000 and more who have signed a petition (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.change.org\/p\/the-bbc-should-remove-homophobic-tyson-fury-from-sports-personality-of-the-year-shortlist?recruiter=2649931&amp;utm_source=share_petition&amp;utm_medium=twitter&amp;utm_campaign=share_twitter_responsive&amp;rp_sharecordion_checklist=control\" >available here<\/a>) pressurising the BBC to remove boxer Tyson Fury from its shortlist for Sports Personality of the Year (SPOTY) on the grounds that <a href=\"http:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/sport\/sports-personality-of-the-year\/12032967\/BBC-urged-to-drop-Tyson-Fury-from-SPOTY-shortlist-over-homophobic-and-misogynist-comments.html\" >his shockingly sexist and homophobic remarks<\/a> show him to be a man whose personality gives absolutely no grounds for celebration, still less for an award.<\/p>\n<p>Fury\u2019s comments include remarks about fellow SPOTY nominee Jessica Ennis-Hill\u2019s appearance, saying that she \u201cslaps up good\u201d and \u201clooks quite fit when she\u2019s got a dress on\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>In response to the widespread public condemnation of his remarks, Fury has denied being sexist and his wife Paris <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mirror.co.uk\/3am\/celebrity-news\/tyson-furys-big-softie-cries-6962188\" >has defended the boxer<\/a> as his \u201cshow side\u201d but he has continued his vile stream of unconsciousness telling critics in an interview with IFLTV\u2019s Kugan Cassius that they can \u201csuck my balls\u201d and called those who have signed the SPOTY petition as \u201c50,000 wankers\u201d.<\/p>\n<figure><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube-nocookie.com\/embed\/1ViOwOJtVZY?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0\" width=\"440\" height=\"260\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/figure>\n<blockquote><p>I\u2019m a little bit backward I didn\u2019t really go to school so which part of \u201ca woman looks good in a dress\u201d was sexist?\u2026 I stand up for my beliefs. My wife\u2019s job is cooking and cleaning and looking after these kids, that\u2019s it. She does get to make some decisions \u2013 what she\u2019s gonna cook me for tea when I get home\u2026 She\u2019s a very privileged woman to have a husband like me.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>It\u2019s also fairly disturbing that Cassius appears to agree with these sentiments.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"align-center zoomable\"><a href=\"https:\/\/62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com\/files\/104663\/area14mp\/image-20151207-3154-14dw25u.jpg\" ><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com\/files\/104663\/width668\/image-20151207-3154-14dw25u.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a><figcaption>\n<span class=\"caption\">Jessica Ennis: role model and high achiever.<\/span><br \/>\n<span class=\"attribution\"><span class=\"source\">Reuters\/Damir Sagolj<\/span><\/span><br \/>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Fury has been unrepentant since, as his Twitter comments amply illustrate:<\/p>\n<p><script src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><script src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><script src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Not only have his comments been sexist, but he continues this verbal diarrhoea by attempting to frame his homophobic beliefs as embedded in Christianity saying \u201cthe bible doesn\u2019t lie\u201d. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/people\/tyson-fury-suck-my-homophobia-sexism-comments-ifb-tv-a6762286.html\" >Fury told Oliver Holt<\/a>:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>There are only three things that need to be accomplished before the devil comes home: one of them is homosexuality being legal in countries, one of them is abortion and the other one\u2019s paedophilia. Who would have thought in the 50s and 60s that those first two would be legalised?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>This link between paedophilia and homosexuality is not only extremely harmful but against the law. However, these laws brought in by the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.legislation.gov.uk\/ukpga\/2010\/15\/contents\" >Equality Act in 2010<\/a> do not seem to be protecting women and LGBT people from this sort of discrimination.<\/p>\n<p>Once again, I\u2019m disappointed that a sportsperson lacking in such moral character has been able to receive exposure that celebrates his aggressive sporting prowess but ignores the greater problem that can be spread by these harmful beliefs. Many sports can be misused as an arena for promoting a skewed brand of heterosexual masculinity which feeds sexism and homophobia into all sports \u2013 whether played by <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Sports-Society-Controversies-Jay-Coakley\/dp\/0077117441\" >men or women<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Fury\u2019s brand of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/voices\/backing-homophobic-tyson-fury-may-mean-a-knock-out-for-the-bbc-a6761041.html\" >sexism and homophobia<\/a> only serves to reinforce these findings. When these sorts of attitudes are evident and accepted in sport, it is hardly surprising that athletes have fears of \u201ccoming out\u201d and sportswomen feel less valued.<\/p>\n<h2>The harm of invincibility<\/h2>\n<p>Of course, there\u2019s no suggestion that this applies to Fury, but when <a href=\"http:\/\/www.tandfonline.com\/doi\/abs\/10.1080\/07448481.2010.483715\" >athletes believe<\/a> that they are invincible, above the law, or incapable of being hurt they can undermine respect for authority or social norms and can result in criminal activity or deviant behaviour because they believe that the \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.tandfonline.com\/doi\/abs\/10.1080\/13573320701464150\" >jock culture<\/a>\u201d of which they are a part takes precedence over any other authoritative structures outside their sporting world.<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/?p=541\" >a large body of research<\/a> suggests that competitive sporting environments provide a unique socio-cultural context that offers possibilities for sexual abuse and exploitation to take place. For example, <a href=\"http:\/\/jss.sagepub.com\/content\/19\/2\/126.abstract\" >findings<\/a> in one study indicated that male college student-athletes were responsible for a significantly higher percentage of reports of sexual assault on the campuses of Division I institutions (the highest level of intercollegiate athletes). <a href=\"http:\/\/fs.ncaa.org\/Docs\/NCAANewsArchive\/2003\/Editorial\/policy+alone+is+not+a+deterrent+to+violence+-+5-26-03.html\" >Another study<\/a> showed that while male college athletes made up only 3.3% of the collegiate population, they represented 19% of sexual assault perpetrators and 35% of domestic violence perpetrators.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile challenging homophobia in sport can be an intimidating task, particularly when the person handing out the abusive comments appears to be so intimidating and invincible. But nevertheless, some sports are raising their game \u2013 rugby, for example, rising to the challenge of promoting awareness of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.standard.co.uk\/news\/london\/good-tackle-rugby-players-strip-off-to-raise-awareness-of-homophobia-in-sport-10111114.html\" >gay issues<\/a>. It seems to be making a big effort to challenge homophobia, which also could enable a much less narrow definition of masculinity to be accepted in rugby.<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps boxing should follow the example of men\u2019s rugby? The BBC could help this shift by removing Fury from their list. It would certainly help the sport of kings climb off the canvas when it comes to promoting acceptable behaviour among its stars.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/counter.theconversation.edu.au\/content\/51929\/count.gif\" alt=\"The Conversation\" width=\"1\" height=\"1\" \/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/helen-owton-172537\" >Helen Owton<\/a>, Lecturer in Sport &amp; Fitness, <em><a href=\"http:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/the-open-university\" >The Open University<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>This article was originally published on <a href=\"http:\/\/theconversation.com\" >The Conversation<\/a>. Read the <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/why-tyson-furys-sexist-and-homophobic-comments-make-him-unfit-for-bbc-sports-personality-of-the-year-51929\" >original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Helen Owton One could be forgiven for being under the misapprehension that the BBC\u2019s Sports Personality of the Year accolade should be about more than a sportsman or woman\u2019s exploits on track, field, court or ring. The clue\u2019s in the name: \u201cpersonality\u201d. Most of us, I would think, would expect that the honour should [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[74,32,31,29,36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-933","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-e314","category-equality","category-gender","category-helen-owton","category-homophobia"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/933","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=933"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/933\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":935,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/933\/revisions\/935"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/OU-Sport\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}