The Madrid Open tennis tournament, which took place from April 25, 2023 to May 7, is currently at the center of controversy because the organizers let the female ball models wear too “feminine” outfits. .

Specifically, during men’s matches on fields with stands, a group of ball models were assigned to participate in support. Their uniforms were short, pleated skirts and crop tops, while the Ball caddies on outside courts are allowed to wear traditional, less revealing clothing.

The kit was changed following criticism from Spain’s equality minister, Soledad Murillo, who asserted that the uniform worn by ball girls on the field would “incite discrimination.” treatment targeting women”.

Spokesperson for the Spanish Association of Women in Professional Sports, Pilar Calvino, has also called on the Madrid Open to change its policy. She asserted that this is an extremely common form of sexist violence, so common that no one recognizes anything unusual.

Outfit before (top) and after change (bottom)

The costumes have been changed for Sunday’s final between Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz and Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff. The girls no longer wear skirts but instead wear shorts.

The Madrid Open has been criticized many times in the past for dressing ball models too provocatively. One of the most prominent was in 2004. In 2004, criticism prompted the Madrid Open – then owned by Romanian billionaire Ion Tiriac – to hire male ball models to “balance the score”.

Gender discrimination doesn’t stop there

It’s no coincidence that people “dig up” the details that demonstrate the organizers’ sexist ideology. The latest controversy over costumes broke out in a context where female players at the tournament were being treated unfairly.

Also on Sunday, the players in the women’s doubles final did not have the opportunity to speak to the crowd during the trophy presentation ceremony, making Victoria Azarenka, the symbol of world women’s tennis, extremely unhappy.

Victoria Azarenka is considered a symbol of world women’s tennis

She and a teammate excellently won but were not allowed to say a word. A disappointed Azarenka wrote on Twitter: “It was so difficult to explain to my son that I couldn’t say hello to him at the trophy ceremony. Didn’t have a chance to speak after today’s final.”

Ons Jabeur – last year’s Madrid Open women’s singles champion, also noticed the anomaly, she angrily wrote: “It’s a pity that she didn’t have the opportunity to speak in front of the crowd. This is so sad and unacceptable.”

Furthermore, Azarenka also pointed out the discrimination in the way the organizers treated the athletes. If male athlete Alcaraz was treated to a three-tiered birthday cake, female athlete Iga Swiatek only received a cake four times smaller.

The representative of the Madrid tournament has not yet given an official explanation, but it seems that they are trying to prevent Azarenka from continuing to speak offensively. If so, this move will probably be counterproductive, and will only cause Madrid to receive more criticism.