Athletes have come out in force to condemn a sports betting advert featuring naked Sydney Sweeney, 29, as the American actress is accused of setting women’s sport back
Team GB golden girl Amy Hunt is the latest female athlete to hit out at Sydney Sweeney’s controversial gambling advert as the actress was accused of sexualising women’s sport.
Olympic stars have come out in force to slam the campaign, which sees the 29-year-old in various states of undress as she pretends to play a number of different sports. The ad, for US sports prediction market company Novig, has come under fire and the response from athletes past and present has been swift.
Sydney’s decision to take part has been widely criticised, with retired swimmer Ariarne Titmus saying she understood this type of “bulls**t” marketing to be a thing of the past. Hers was not the only strong reaction sparked, with others suggesting sportswomen are still being defined by their appearance – and not their achievements.
Joining the outrage at the ad is British sprinter Amy, with the four-time European champion making a dig after securing a season-best 22.10 seconds in the 200m final at the Ultimate Championship in Budapest.
“Sydney Sweeney, this is what women in sport look like,” she said in her post-race interview with BBC Sport on Sunday night.
The trend was started by American gymnast Gracie Kramer, who uploaded a montage of herself training. She captioned her clip: “I don’t know what Sydney Sweeney was doing, but this is what women in sport look like.”
While some suggested anger should be directed at the betting firm rather than the Euphoria actress, Novig said in a statement that Sydney is not just the face of the campaign, but has joined as “strategic partner and equity holder”.
She finally responded and in a statement, said the campaign was “about embracing a fun idea”. She went on: “The concept is simple: cut through the noise and put the focus entirely on sports. The campaign brings that idea to life with confidence, humour and a playful edge.”
That hasn’t stopped the annoyance. “I can’t describe how infuriated I feel when I watch this,” the four-time Olympic gold medallist Ariarne Titmus added on Instagram.
“Not only is it a kick in the face to every woman who had dedicated her life to perfecting her craft, but every women who enjoys sports for what it really is – teamwork, friendship, dedication, excellent, unity …
“How do we live in a world where monetising a women’s body and sexualising women’s sport is still a thing?”
Water polo silver medallist Tilly Kearns joined the anger, saying, “I absolutely f***g hate Sydney Sweeney’s new sports ad”, while world champion boxer Skye Nicolson said the ad was making a “mockery” of women in sport.
“There’s a big difference between looking ‘sexy’ because you do sport compared to use sex to sell ‘sport’,” she wrote in an Instagram story. “There is nothing wrong with looking good and doing sport and there’s nothing wrong with embracing your femininity while also being a badass athlete.”
British cyclist and Olympic champion Sophie Capewell MBE, as well as rugby players Lisa Neumann and Ellie Boatman have also added their voice.
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