Ah, pinkwashing: A female athlete’s worst nightmare. Trying to appeal to a female audience with pink and bows. Marketing pink athletic equipment specifically to women, is like sticking a target on women that says “we are different.” This type of marketing shows women that the only way they will be accepted as athletes or celebrated for their wins is by succumbing to stereotypes. Not only does society fail to recognize women’s achievements, brands focus on infantilizing female athletes. With the rise of social media, this problem has only grown. For instance, Sky Sports’ creation of the social media account Halo, which, aimed to promote women’s sports and increase visibility for female athletes, undercut the true message due to its marketing. Being the “lil sis,” implying that these women are not as competent as male athletes, of Sky Sports demeans women’s sports and these hardworking athletes aren’t seen as female athletes — they are seen as female athletes. Not the same thing. Their achievements are overlooked because they are women. Most will ignore this problem and act as if it’s a thing of the past. Well, check the calendar! The U.S. men’s hockey team won a gold medal at the Olympics, and as they were on the phone with President Trump, laughed when he said that he had to invite the women’s hockey team.

French and living skills teacher Kirsten Tasker was disappointed in the U.S. men’s hockey team’s response to Trump’s comment.

“(When I heard that I thought), ‘who do they think they are?’” Tasker said. “You’d expect (and) you would want to see solidarity. You’d want to (hear), ‘The women’s team who does the same thing as us, right?’ They also play hockey. They also did incredibly well, so I think it’s shameful. People are getting tired of being shocked. So unfortunately, some of us (are becoming) numb to all the belittling.”

Gender biases have long been deep-rooted on the field. Women started competing in the Olympics in 1900, while the Olympics have been going on for 3,000 years. Women have had the same opportunities for men in athletics for less than 5% of the time men have had. Barely a fraction.

Undervaluing female athletes is not confined to the professional league. Gunn’s girls lacrosse team is ranked 59th out of 279 statewide, according to Max Preps. The team expected that standing to evoke recognition within the school community. But, it doesn’t happen. Girls lacrosse captain senior Tove Kaleba has noticed discrepancies in how other male sports are treated compared to her sport, despite their rank.

“I notice how some of the male athletes in other sports are praised for their accomplishments on the field, court or pool, and I’m like, ‘Hey girls lacrosse won our league,’” she said. “We were seeded first or second in the Central Coast Section the last two years. Our team has had League MVPs, Attackers and Defenders of the year for the last four years.”

Even when the boys lacrosse team faces similar challenges, the imbalance feels especially prevalent in girls sports teams, as women have been undermined in athletics for years.

“I think (the inequality is) rooted in the history of athletics, previously seen as demonstrations in masculinity,” Kaleba said. “We are still working toward a culture that appreciates athletic abilities without gender biases. It kind of sucks because it feels arbitrary which sports we place emphasis on, but that’s not why I play. I play for the love of the game.”

Freshman girls varsity basketball player Martha van Roessel has noticed significant differences between the boys’ basketball team and the girls’ basketball team and the support they receive.

“I have seen the boys get a much bigger audience at games as well, (especially at) the Paly game,” van Roessel said. “This makes me feel a little bit frustrated when our games get less attention. For basketball in particular I feel that a smaller number of girls as opposed to guys are interested in playing and for that reason more attention is placed on boys games. I also think that there are inequalities between men and women’s sports because there is a shorter history of women’s sports.”

French and living skills teacher Kirsten Tasker has noticed this mistreatment is especially prevalent when female athletes have children.

“I find that when professional women have children (the media makes) a very big deal of it, and it’s been annoying,” Tasker said. “In society, there’s an assumption that women do the bulk of the work, and if they manage to do other things too, they’re incredible. What they’re doing shouldn’t be seen as a supernatural feat that they come back after pregnancy to pursue their careers, because whether you’re a teacher or (an athlete) that has a baby, you take time off, (and) you come back to your profession.”