Sports for many Americans are an entertaining distraction even during even the darkest of times. They show the best of humanity: the glory, the beauty, the miracles. However, what we often forget is who the person is behind the uniform.
Many people and legislators in the United States have worked hard to level the playing field and bridge the gaps between women’s and men’s sports. With the passing of Title IX in 1972 and the continuous fight for equal pay in professional sports the treatment of women has gotten better. But the misogyny in sports is still there and what happens when it runs so deep that it is expected in the players, coaches, and judges? What happens when it is protected behind locker room doors disguised as a joke, but then transforms into something palpable and disgusts viewers?
This is exactly what the 2026 Winter Olympics pointed out to every American who cared enough to look past the ‘welcoming’ facade. In the past few weeks the viewership of hockey in the United States has gone up due to a multitude of factors which reach out to a broader and more inclusive audience. So, imagine how surprised people were to watch the video of the Olympic gold-medal Men’s Hockey team laughing at a joke about excluding the women’s team from celebrating their gold-medal win. They laughed at their teammates who won the same medal and with the same score.
Imagine working your whole life for one sport, one team, one game all for you to be belittled by the players of the opposite gender. Meanwhile, even though you perform at the same level, you are paid less and disrespected more. This is exactly what the Women’s USA Hockey team experienced.
The truth is that during the 2026 Olympics, 17 medals were brought home by women and 12 were won by men making this the third consecutive Winter Olympics where women have outperformed men.
The Men’s Hockey team has not won gold since 1980 and they have only medaled two times from between 1980 and 2026. Whereas, women’s hockey was added during the 1998 games and they have medaled at every Olympic appearance. They are 8 for 8. Three golds (1998, 2018, 2026), four silvers (2002, 2010, 2014, 2022) and one bronze (2006).
The response to the people who were upset at the women’s exclusion was to wish that sports weren’t political but the women didn’t make it political. And sports have always been political. From the Roman Gladiators to Billie Jean King to players like Angle Reese and Catlin Clark fighting for the pay that they deserve– all of it is politics.
Sports and athletes give us something to look forward to when the going gets tough. They make us feel a sense of community and the Olympics allowed us to feel pride in our countrymen. To feel like a united group for two weeks while we cheer on Team USA. The Men’s Hockey team made us question who is really on our team?
