Women’s athletics broadcasts are about to change.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and European Athletics published a series of recommendations for television cameras to stop using angles that could sexualize female athletes. Among them, they call for avoiding shots from behind, cameras positioned at a low height, and slow-motion replays that do not provide sporting information.
The idea is for the images to focus on the athletes’ technique, speed, strength, and performance, rather than highlighting parts of their bodies.
Although the recommendations are not mandatory, they have already been distributed to the networks that broadcast athletics competitions and could become the new standard for future coverage.
As expected, the announcement sparked a wave of comments on social media.
Several upset users responded with humor by sharing old videos and photographs taken precisely from the angles that are now being avoided.
The organizations themselves explained that the goal is not to censor images, but to improve the way the sport is presented.
and prevent female athletes from being reduced to their physical appearance during broadcasts.