[Bright Red]

All sports, for the most part, can be played by either or both sexes. However, some sports seem to be more geared towards men-- e.g., American football, basketball, hockey. Others seem to be more geared towards women--ice skating, gymnastics, synchronized swimming. Of course, you may disagree with my examples, but you get the idea.

Where does tennis fall on the gender scale in your opinion?

 

[TeeRexx]

Yes, tennis was originally a game for women of nobility that men took up more at a later date, I believe.

 

[jel-x]

I'd say neutral; but unfortunately I think in the U.S. at least, tennis is not considered to be very, uh, "manly" for lack of a better term.

 

[Linton]

Bright Red I wouldnt say neutral 100% coz it aint neutral its one of those sports where any sex can take it up.

 

[destructo_girl]

I used to see tennis as one of those girly sports, cos I had this mental image of posh Ladies from England playing with wooden racquets, pulling up the hems of thier skirts to skip towards the ball.

Then I started watching, and seeing Sampras and Agassi, I felt it was more of a guys sport, judging from the way they blew they hell out of the ball. And thinking, how could the women compare?

But then I started watching womens tennis, and now I feel that the womens game is a helluva lot better to watch. The guys just don't seem to have the grace and the finesse that really highlights the game.

So I'm gonna have to go with a women's sport.

 

[Bright Red]

I think I also remember tennis being originally played by women, although the game is a lot different now. I tend to fall towards the side of it being more of a feminine sport, especially since the guys don't really get dirty, they wear short shorts, there's almost no physical contact, and the guys themselves don't look "manly" compared to males in some of the other sports.

I don't know whether or not the US views the sport of tennis as a girlie sport. But given the popularity of Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi, and the other Americans before them, I would think they have an opinion one way or the other.

I think that as the sport continues to gain widespread appeal and trickles down to lower-income populations, then the answer will become clearer. If you see a lot of guys taking up the sport in your local high schools and neighborhoods, then hey, there you have it.

 

[HAIL-VENUS]

I've always associated tennis with women. I guess because it's a noncontact sport, and I usually associate men with physically agressive sports.

 

[G-Ha]

I think it's more of a gay man's sport. It's one of the few sports that many gay men follow -- just look at how many are on this board.

 

[Volcana]

Like any sport, size matters. In that respect, tennis favors men. Putting that aside, part of the beauty of tennis is that it's gender-neutral. Match up two players of roughly equal size and ability and gender is a non-factor.

Sports that favor men mostly favor upper-body strength. Tennis does not. There are quite a few players with bigger arms than Venus on the tour. Nobody hits harder. Cause her power comes from her technique. Good technique is about discipline. Discipline doesn't care about gender.

 

[Sam L]

"It's one of the few sports that many gay men follow -- just look at how many are on this board."

You're right on that one... Tennis is definitely FEMININE. I think the general public and non-tennis followers associate tennis with grace, flair, fashion and anything nice

Also they expect like cattyness, bitchiness etc... I think also with the recent popularity of Anna K, the Williams sisters and all the calender girls make it even more feminine, which is NOT a bad thing at all.

However, I do think that some ATP players might be a little peeved with this image. But it is a right image. I mean I don't particularly think that any of the male players are that masculine. If I want to see masculine men, watch like Ice Hockey, Football etc..

 

[Bright Red]

Same here, Sam L.

If you want to see masculinity in action, you gotta go to the NFL, NHL, or WWF--and NOT the ATP.

 

[Tatiana Panova]

I probably see it as a girlier sport, but that really doesn't mean anything. Why can't femininity be associated with strength, power, and aggression?

I think it is not a question of whether you are girly to play tennis but more your outlook on life. I am a solo-challenge person, and I like to tackle things on my own. I hate playing team sports, and often watching them. Yet I love watching boxing. I think that most people get into tennis for this reason if they are young, because it is one of the few non-team sports.

 

[sartrista7]

Tatiana Panova - spot on. It's one of the only major one-on-one sports around - and there's something about getting behind one individual which is so much more satisfying than getting behind a team, some of whom you may even dislike.

Given that tennis was invented by monks, I doubt that women were the first to play it. Still, it's not exactly Testosterone Central, even on the ATP. (Especially on the ATP - Jan-Michael Gambill )