The practice of sport as a leisure activity then as an object of competition developed during the 19th century.e century among the elites. And the fight for her feminization came with it. Women are not banned from all disciplines, but their opportunities are limited. Through clothing, for example: in Europe or the United States, bourgeois women are required to wear dresses on a daily basis, often baggy, which poses a problem when practicing many sports, such as cycling.
Born in 1818, the American Amelia Bloomer would find a solution, and revolutionize women’s clothing in the process. She created a kind of culottes similar to pants, which bears her name – the “bloomer” – and will be worn by Annie Londonderry to tour the world by bicycle in 1894.
Alice Milliat, Wilma Rudolph, Billie Jean King, Kathrine Switzer… In this video, we retrace the journey of five women who, like Amelia Bloomer, will, through their commitment or their performance, revolutionize sport by opening more of the way for women.
This video was produced with the help of students from the Rosa-Parks college in Rennes, as part of the Our Futures festivalorganized with The world and the metropolis of Rennes at the Champs Libres from March 21 to 24. It aims to give voice to young people on issues that concern them. Free admission.
“Understand in three minutes”
The explanatory videos that make up the “Understand in three minutes” series are produced by the Vertical Videos department of the World. Broadcast primarily on platforms such as TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook, they aim to put major events into context in a short format and make the news accessible to everyone.