Maria Sharapova

13 October the Kremlin Cup tennis — the first will be a qualification, starting from October 15 will start the main tournament. This sport is considered one of the most popular in the world. The public interest in the fights on the court is huge — it can be understood and filled the stands at matches, and multimillion-dollar contracts of athletes.

However, many are attracted not so much sporting achievements as aesthetic side — the image of the tennis player have already become part of popular culture, and seductive outfits of skin-tight tops and ultra short skirts excite the imagination of millions of men. Together with the designer, a psychologist and a psychiatrist SPLETNIK.RU decided to investigate how changing the fashion in tennis, and why this sport is so pervasive sexual objectification.

Maria Sharapova

Over the long history of its development dress code in tennis has undergone significant changes, and today the rules are not so strict: for example, the skirt is now not a required part of the uniform, the athlete may be in shorts, but most still continue to go to court in “traditional” clothes. Largely to please the public viewers have long been accustomed to such a way he became part of those emotions and experiences that fans expect to get from the match.

Ana Ivanovic

Maria Sharapova

Previously, women played tennis, of course, in much more modest outfits, but they were also regulated. However, if the rules were more determined by membership to private clubs and closed societies, long time, tennis was fun only for aristocratic circles. Game was fascinated and Russian writer Leo Tolstoy tennis even mentioned in the novel “Anna Karenina”, on which he worked in the 1870s.

Have a photo where Tolstoy himself was captured in the court — writer dressed in pants and a peasant shirt, and its surrounding ladies were forced to skillfully wield the racket, moving around the court at that time traditional dresses with long skirts. I wonder what Tolstoy considered tennis a fad of the rich, which briefly remain in fashion.

But the classic turned out to be wrong — the sport has only gained popularity, and with the beginning of the new century, changes in the dress code: first, clothing is more functional — it was necessary that she should not constrain movements, and then the sports equipment becomes an object of fashion.

A scene from the movie “battle of the sexes”

Since 20-ies of XX century in tennis going progress. External changes are shifting in the direction of sexuality. Skirts become shorter and shorter, shirts more and more tight. This happens gradually with each decade. It is possible to observe a very interesting balance over the years. The balance between sexiness and comfort. From the point of view of comfort, the suit is minimized, so as not to constrain movement, plus the added adaptability of materials: they are breathable, now we come to the fabrics with sun filters. But as soon as it begins to appear a touch of sex that starts the money machine and profit, the agents of the athletes fighting for the best contracts, companies producing sportswear, want the athletes in their clothes more than the others, and sexuality is no less important than the game itself.

Anna KournikovaKate Upton

Sarah Michelle Gellar

Sex and power and money — is a component of power, excite people on the instinctive level, i.e. on the animal. People are always attracted to anything that is about power, money, manipulation, control and sex. It’s about that singer we may be voiceless, but at the same time as bare. One of the pillars of the world economy is cosmetology, the same part and plastic surgery, and it is also all in order to achieve the most sexuality. All around this is built, if you want to sell it. If we are talking about tennis, I can not think of a single sport where else would so erotic screaming when hitting the ball. Here was made the emphasis on this sexual signal, although it is clear that when a tennis player hits the ball, he’s not thinking about sex, and about how the ball — this cry helps the body, it derives from emotions. But people hear these cries, and they excite their animal part. To all this added the right suit, so more people went to look at the competition, was fond of this sport, and maybe have played themselves and sexually attracted to other people.

Maria Sharapovaimage from the movie “the witches of Eastwick”

Serena Williams

Unlike team sports tennis is based on the interaction of two people — in a dramatic confrontation of personalities inspired many other filmmakers and writers. Master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock added the sport in his film “strangers on a train”, Vladimir Nabokov plays tennis Lolita.

Frame from the film “Lolita”Kirsten dunst in “Wimbledon”Emma stone in the movie “battle of the sexes”

A scene from the movie “battle of the sexes”

Male behavior in the female form is in itself quite sexy. If you compare tennis with ballet, which is also quite sexy, the art form, the ballet is expressed as sexuality. There are all refined. In tennis, it’s all the more obvious. It’s a striking match, it is this exchange of moves, there is a constant struggle, it is the exchange of emotions, sharing of intentions. In any sparring a lot of sexual behavior. If we consider the children’s perception, the children watching some sexual things between the parents, perceive them as fight, fight. Sports match in tennis is a stylized act of interaction between two people. It is the sparring makes tennis so sexy on a subconscious level, after all, here we have no direct associations. Besides, sparring is combined with an archaic behavior that is typical of people not even other eras, and earlier civilizations.

However, as experts believe, not only in the deep subconscious associations — many athletes themselves are struggling to draw attention to themselves, experimenting with costumes and even accessories. But in many ways these experiments not directed at the banal demonstration of women as sex objects, and just the destruction of the existing about the way a player of stereotypes.

Sexuality is always shocking, so Serena and Venus Williams shocking on the court with their tight leggings. It is a challenge to such beauties like Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic. And they with their sexy long legs in short skirts no longer cope with the shocking and attention, which attracts Serena with their impressive shapes, wearing tight leotards with black or pink lycra. Contracts and Serena, as we see more and photographed more often than the classic sexy sportswomen with long legs. I noticed another interesting fact. Suit in tennis is still quite simple. So, tennis players were starting to attract attention in several ways — it’s the tattoos and jewelry. For example, a very beautiful ear piercing in our Svetlana Kuznetsova, it adds to her sexuality. Tennis players know that they periodically shoot a closeup, and they try to use every opportunity to show and prove their sexuality. Tattoo and piercing is another way to attract attention and generate buzz.

Svetlana Kuznetsova, Maria Sharapova,Ana Ivanovic,Anna Kournikova

Provoke themselves athletes, this heightened interest to their bodies and appearance or are a hostage of the existing system and requirements of the advertising contracts, but the pursuit of likes and endless competition of who will flaunt more, can lead to serious problems, say psychologists.

Chloe Khan

Maria Sharapova

Anna Kournikova

The fact that every year the costumes of the players are becoming more outspoken, is not the cause but rather the result that this unconscious perception of tennis as a kind of sexual action. After all, to make the skirt shorter, not to increase sexuality, on the contrary, sexuality is intriguing. And here is quite Frank, open and erotic. When tennis had just started the costume of the players and their movements were like subtle sexual dance, it is now more straightforward and honest. Now generally there are so many sex in any process, advertising, television… And in this sport, eroticism that gives the intrigue of sexuality, leaves, and aktiviziruyutsya straightforward interest in the process. That is leaving the hill, we move to a more straightforward situation.

Are you interested in tennis?