Esther Phiri and the Moutawakel effect in Zambia: an analysis of the use of female role models in sport-for-development

Abstract

In the burgeoning field of sport and development, ‘role models’ have been invoked as an important element to increase the participation of girls and women in sport. Grounded in the African sport-in-development experience and in a case study of Zambian women's sports and the boxer, Esther Phiri, this essay examines the discourse around the use of ‘role models’ and begins to elaborate a theory around the use of this hitherto elusive notion specifically in the experience of sport-in-development projects and programmes which have gender-specific outcomes. We consider how role models may function to encourage and sustain female involvement, as well as to contribute to achieving goals set for sport and development projects, including (positively) altering gender roles and expectations. We conclude with a look towards promising areas of future research as well as a critical reflection on the limits of role models as a tool, especially given real-world intrusions.

Notes

¹ ILO, ‘Women in Sports’, 30.

² Coalter, ‘Sport-in-Development’, 63.

³ The few academic works include Baker and Mangan, Sport in Africa; Darby, ‘A Context of Vulnerability’; Andresen et al. , Sportstrukturen in Afrika; Peacock-Villada, DeCelles and Banda, ‘Grassroot Soccer Resiliency Pilot Program’.

⁴ Komakoma, ‘An Investigation Into Fan Identity’; Mwaanga, ‘HIV/Aids at Risk Adolescent Girls' Empowerment’; Kakuwa, Zambian Traditional Games; Banda, ‘Evaluating the Role of Sport Orientated Non-Government Organisations’; Banda, ‘Linking Teaching and Research’.

⁵ Scholarly work on the history of sport in Africa is limited, but more is coming into circulation. In addition to other work mentioned here see, Alegi, Laduma!; Darby, Africa, Football, and FIFA; Nauright, Sport, Cultures, and Identities; Fair, ‘Kickin’ it’; Jones, ‘Women and Sport in South Africa’. There are numerous unpublished doctoral and masters theses in African university libraries that have programmes in sports education such as at INSEPS (Institut National Supérieur de l'Education Populaire et du Sport) in Dakar.

⁶ ‘Introduced’ suggests that the sports were fully formed in Europe and then disseminated. Rather, nationalism, colonialism, imperialism, the neo-liberal state and globalization all influenced and continue to influence the development of modern sport. As such, sport experiences in the colonies themselves feed back into what is understood as ‘modern sport’.

⁷ See Deville-Danthu, Le sport en noir et blanc.

⁸ Saavedra, ‘Sport’.

⁹ See Giulianotti and Armstrong, ‘Drama, Fields and Metaphors’. This cursory overview of the general history of modern sport and especially football in Africa is provided with the recognition that in fact there were multiple trajectories for the introduction and reinvention of various sporting codes and physical cultures throughout the continent.

¹⁰ Kakuwa, Zambian Traditional Games.

¹¹ ‘Early Marriages Disappoint Headteacher’. Zambia News and Information Services, April 8 2009, (Kazungula). http://www.zanis.org.zm/index.php?option = com_content&task = view&id = 3429&Itemid = 70.

¹² Kakuwa, Zambian Traditional Games.

¹³ Specifically by the Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Confederation of Sports.

¹⁴ SADC, ‘Article 9, Gender’.

¹⁵ Saavedra, ‘Football Feminine’; Meier, Zarte Füsschen am harten Leder.

¹⁶ These are the rankings from 27 March 2009 found on the FIFA website: for all women's teams: http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/ranking/lastranking/gender = f/fullranking.html. For African teams: http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/ranking/lastranking/gender = f/fullranking.html#confederation = 23913&rank = 525. Of the 33 African nations listed in the FIFA rankings, only 21 are considered official, with the rest being provisional rankings. Only teams that have played five matches against teams with official rankings are deemed official. M. Saavedra is working on an analysis of the rankings of African women's national football teams over the years.

¹⁷ H. Chilufya, ‘Zambia: Women Suffer Another Gender Discrimination’. Panafrican News Agency, July 30, 1998. http://allafrica.com/stories/199807300044.html.

¹⁸ Mwaanga, ‘HIV/Aids at Risk Adolescent Girls' Empowerment’.

¹⁹ M. Muyumba, ‘Women's Soccer Wins Govt Support’. The Post, June 30, 1998 (Lusaka). http://allafrica.com/stories/199806300162.html.

²⁰ ‘Women Soccer Body Disbands’. Times of Zambia, June 15, 1998 (Ndola). http://allafrica.com/stories/199806150142.html.

²¹ ‘Support Women's Football, Lusaka Traders Challenged’. Times of Zambia, February 3, 2003 (Ndola). http://www.times.co.zm/news/viewnews.cgi?category = all&id = 104430 1803.

²² FIFA, FIFA Financial Report 2005, 35.

²³ http://www.fazambia.com/ and http://www.faz.org.zm/.

²⁴ For instance, Recreational Sport Soccer Statistics Foundations (RSSSF) statistics for Zambian women's football shows results, sketchy at that, only from 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007 with the note on the latter that ‘FAZ hopes to start a national tournament 2008’. See http://www.rsssf.com/tablesz/zamb-wom07.html.

²⁵ ‘FINA Kicks Zambia Out of International Netball’. Times of Zambia, March 8, 2006, (Ndola). http://www.times.co.zm/news/viewnews.cgi?category = all&id = 1141843792.

²⁶ He actually shared the bronze with José Bolivar of Venezuela.

²⁷ http://www.iaaf.org/athletes/biographies/country = zam/index.html.

²⁸ Rotella, ‘Good with Her Hands’.

²⁹ Wacquant, ‘Pugs at Work’, 90.

³⁰ Park, ‘From “Genteel Diversions” to “Bruising Peg”’; Hargreaves, ‘Women's Boxing and Related Activities’; Guttmann, Women's Sports. Some refer even in the present moment to the near pornographic treatment of some women's boxing. This issue deserves more attention, but is beyond the scope of this essay.

³¹ Mennesson, ‘“Hard” Women and “Soft” Women’, 22.

³² Women Boxing Archive Network, ‘Boxing Trivia’.

³³ H. Liwanga, ‘Zambia's Female Boxing Star Challenges Stereotypes’. Afrol News/Gender Links, March 28, 2007. http://www.afrol.com/articles/24897.

³⁴ UNDP, 2008 Statistical Update – Zambia.

³⁵ See P. Banda, ‘Esther Phiri: To Marry or Not to Marry’ ‘Zambian Famous Female Boxer’. Zambia Daily Mail, August 7, 2008. http://www.daily-mail.co.zm/media/news/viewnews.cgi?category = 19&id = 1218091351.

³⁶ Republic of Zambia. ‘Levy Congratulates Esther for Retaining Title’. http://web.archive.org/web/20070810204539.

³⁷ Ibid.

³⁸ ‘…As Business Community Weighs in with Flurry of Donations’. Times of Zambia, April 5, 2007 (Ndola). http://www.times.co.zm/news/viewnews.cgi?category = all&id = 1175760684.

³⁹ George Lwandamina, ‘Phiri to Battle it out Against Keli Cofer’. Times of Zambia, December 2, 2006 (Ndola). http://www.times.co.zm/news/viewnews.cgi?category = all&id = 1165048836.

⁴⁰ ‘Esther Phiri Receives World Recognition for her Boxing Talents’. Lusaka Times, February 25, 2007. http://www.lusakatimes.com/?p = 193.

⁴¹ J.J. Schatz, ‘Esther Phiri Rises to Prominence Despite Limited Sponsorship Avenues in Southern Africa’. Wall Street Journal, August 4, 2008.

⁴² This is the Zambian equivalent of General Mills, the American company, putting star athletes on their Wheaties™ breakfast-of-champions cereal boxes.

⁴³ Caple, ‘Fists of Phiri’; ‘Levy Congratulates Esther Phiri’. Lusaka Times, April 28, 2008. http://www.lusakatimes.com/?p = 2690.

⁴⁴ Caple, ‘Fists of Phiri’.

⁴⁵ Taylor, Culture and Customs of Zambia.

⁴⁶ Nawal El Moutawakel, cited in Van Kempen Consultancy, Creating Support for Change.

⁴⁷ ‘Role Model: Nawal El Moutawakel’. Olympic Review, ‘Role Model’, http://www.multimedia.olympic.org/pdf/en_report_792.pdf.

⁴⁸ On 13, August 2009, the IOC Executive Board approved the addition of women's boxing, beginning at the 2010 London Olympics. http://www.olympic.org/uk/news/media_centre/press_release_uk.asp?id = 3092.

⁴⁹ Rotella, ‘Good with Her Hands’, 583.

⁵⁰ Speizer, ‘Role Models’; Payne et al., Sports Role Models; Vescio, Wilde and Crosswhite, ‘Profiling Sport Role Models’; Lockwood et al. , ‘To Do or Not to Do’; Lockwood et al. , ‘Promoting Success or Preventing Failure’; Lockwood and Kunda, ‘Superstars and Me’.

⁵¹ Lockwood and Kunda, ‘Superstars and Me’.

⁵² Lockwood et al. , ‘To Do or Not to Do’; Lockwood and Kunda, ‘Superstars and Me’.

⁵³ Lockwood et al. , ‘To Do or Not to Do’.

⁵⁴ Lockwood et al. , ‘To Do or Not to Do’

⁵⁵ Lockwood, Marshall and Sadler, ‘Promoting Success or Preventing Failure’.

⁵⁶ Elling, ‘“They (Don't) Have the Right Build for It”’.

⁵⁷ E. Chanda, ‘Kunda Warns Homosexuals’. Sunday Post (reported by Behind the Mask), March 24, 2009. http://www.mask.org.za/article.php?cat = zambia&id = 2074.

⁵⁸ Cole and Hribar, ‘Celebrity Feminism’.

⁵⁹ Rail, Sport and Postmodern Times.

⁶⁰ One of the authors, Marianne Meier, collected such textbooks in Zambia in 2008.

⁶¹ Payne et al. , Sports Role Models.

⁶² S. Ahmed, ‘“Corrective Rape” in South Africa’; Kelly, ‘Raped and Killed for being a Lesbian’. Channel 4 News, March 12, 2009 (UK). http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/world/africa/corrective+rape+in+south+africa+/3027797.

⁶³ We should note that in Martha Saavedra's hometown of Richmond, California, in December 2008 there was a gang rape of a woman just outside of her home allegedly because she was a lesbian. AP, ‘Woman Possibly Targeted in Richmond Gang Rape’. CBS 5 Crime Watch, December 22, 2008 (Richmond, CA). http://cbs5.com/crime/richmond.gang.rape.2.893338.html.

⁶⁴ Coalter, ‘Sport-in-Development’.

⁶⁵ Payne et al. , Sports Role Models.