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Section One: The Fundamentals
A) Keywords
Exercise 1:
Provide a brief definition of one of the padlet keywords for this week.
| Anti-Aging Agenda:
As a young woman, I am very familiar with the “anti-aging agenda”. The first thing that comes to mind is that this presents aging in a negative light. In sport, aging is further vilanized as the age of professional athletes is typically young adults, with athletes approaching retirement age earlier than other careers, and youth is often seen as a competitive advantage. The anti-aging agenda can have some advantages though, especially as it relates to anti-aging, and an example would be older adults continuing to be physically active as it may “make them feel young” at least, that’s how my grandparents have described it. My grandfather was told to continue his bouts of skiing by his doctor to “keep your joints young and healthy”, which despite the negative connotation of this agenda, can be seen as positive as it helps to keep people engaged with physical activity at older age which can improve over all health. As Pike also addresses in the reading, the overall take about this agenda though is that aging is negative, specifically something that shouldn’t be celebrated, which is a narrative that I think should be broken. Too often in sports, age is seen as a career killer, and not for what it is, which is a totally normal biological process that although unfortunate at times, is completely unavoidable.
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B) The Social Significance of Aging in Sport
Exercise 2: Notebook Prompt
How is old age popularly represented today? Find an image online that you think exemplifies one defining attitude towards old age and paste in your notebook below with a brief explanation of what this image means to you.
| I chose this image as to me aging is depicted as being synonymous with sickness and isolation. As a nurse, 90% of my day is spent with people over the age of 75. I’ve seen how aging is depicted in the media as negative, and isolating. Older people are generally depicted as frail, weak, and ill, with an inability to perform activities of daily living and definitely not seen as people that can participate in sports. In sport it is often the same, as athletes age, the media begins to question their abilities, begging the questions seen around headlines “Is ____ retiring yet?” As someone who works with the older population, this depiction makes me feel upset as I meet so many wonderful people that the media would consider “old” but they are still living their lives the same as younger people.
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Exercise 3: Notebook Prompt
What does the article (referencing another study by Dionigi) mean by its statement that sport can help aging people to simultaneously “accept and resist the ageing process” (572)? Respond by audio or text and find paste two images sourced online into your notebook showing how sport might help aging people to both accept and resist the aging process.
| https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/app/uploads/sites/5398/2025/04/what-does-the-articl.wav
Recorded repsonse |
Exercise 4: Notebook Prompt
Who are the groups less likely to have extensive opportunities to take part in sports, according to Pike? How does privilege factor into aging and sport? (200 words max)
| https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/app/uploads/sites/5398/2025/04/who-are-the-groups-l.wav
Recorded response
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Exercise 5: Padlet Discussion
Why do you think age discrimination is “reported more than any form of prejudice” with older people presented as a threat to social values and interests? Feel welcome to use video in your responses. Paste your comments (or transcript of your video) below!
| Age discrimination gets talked about more than a lot of other prejudices because it’s become almost normal in everyday life. People joke about getting old or being “out of touch” without thinking twice, and that kind of thinking shows up in the workplace, media, and even politics. One of the biggest examples is when the “Ok Boomer” meme went around online, which was used to discredit the words of older people. Older people are often unfairly seen as a burden, as though they’re using up too many resources while not contributing to productivity, a trait that is seen as being synonymous with youth. I think this feeds the idea that they’re a threat to younger generations and modern values. This is added to the fact that society tends to link aging with decline and negative values. I see this in my job, where older individuals are more likely to be perceived as racist or homophobic before any interaction with them!
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B) Older Women and Sport
Exercise 6: Notebook Prompt
What differences do you see in these ads? Which one is more inclusive? How is age represented or not represented in each? Answer these questions in your notebook.
| To start, each of these ads are inclusive in different ways.
Ad #1: This ad is inclusive as it portrays athletes from amateur to professional, from children to adult, different races, across different nations, and includes small pieces of activism such as Colin Kapernick’s kneeling and an athlete sporting a pride flag. In all honesty if it was not for being in the context of this module I would not have even noticed the lack of older people in this ad. If my own persumptions are right the oldest athlete depicted her was Lebron James who is only in his 30s. I appreciated that children and recreational sports were depicted in the ad, however the stark lack of older adults or even non-professional adults feeds into the narrative that aging and sport do not go hand-in-hand, the lack of adults portrayed serves as a reminder that there are not many aging faces in the sport community. Ad #2: This ad is inclusive in it’s own way, for starters there is a lack of men, but it makes sense for the type of ad and audience I assume it’s made for. This ad does a better job at portraying aging women, doing activities for fun and exercise and is more inclusive in the sense that it doesn’t depict professional athletes at all, simply regular women, living their lives doing activities. Although it does a little better with including aging bodies and realistic changes that women go through with their bodies as they age, there is still a stark lack of older adults, adults with declining functionality, or women who could be seen as stereotypically “old”.
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Exercise 7: Notebook Prompt
In her article, “Assessing the sociology of sport: On age and ability,” Elizabeth Pike references a “trend towards a ‘feminisation of ageing’, with many women living longer than men” (573). Do you agree that aging has been “feminized” in this way? How? Answer these questions in your notebook.
| I think the feminized idea of aging further depicts aging in a negative light. Through the media and my own lived experiences, I have seen that women aren’t often as free to age as their male counterparts. This comes from societal expectations, as Pike mentioned, for them to continue to be the backbone of their families, caring for their children, grandchildren, and parents. The role of home keeper leads to social isolation and a lack of time or interest in physical activity. As she mentions, yes women are living longer, but to me, I see this as almost because they have to be the caregivers in society.
Something else I wanted to add about the feminization of aging is how beauty standards grossly warp the way that aging is seen for women. As I mentioned, women are not free to age. The media may depict older men as “sexy” with greying hair and beards, but women are depicted as “letting themselves go” if they do not dye their hair. I see this in my own life, as most of the women in my life have dyed their hair since the sight of their first grey hair, yet the men in my life have greyed naturally as it’s more socially acceptable for them to do so. |
Section Three: Module Mini Assignment
| The problem as I understand it, is that the city of Peterborough, is proposing a plan to redevelop Bonnerworth park into 16 paved and lit pickleball courts, complete with a large parking lot, and many residents of the area are unhappy with this decision, citing that they were not asked before this decision being made, and that the decision does not take into account problems like light and noise pollution. In a video from global news, one resident is interviewed explaining that many of the residents are not against the sport, or the building of the courts, however disagree with the way the city went about making this decision, citing that the people who live within and around Bonnerworth park, were not advised on this project in advance (Global News, 2024).
In the conversation around the Bonnerworth Park redevelopment, I think there are some clear signs that ageism is playing a role, especially in how older pickleball players are represented. This is because they aren’t represented much at all! I’ve read three articles on the issue and had a very hard time finding representation of anyone who supports the development, with the main coverage being on younger people who are against the development (Peterborough Currents, 2024). As we’ve seen in this module, older people are often left out of the sports narrative, this situation is no different. I found myself upset that the media chose not to cover topics such as the benefits of pickleball for older adults, which include increased mental well-being and social support, improved balance, cardiovascular fitness, and coordination, all things that help support healthy aging (Medical University of South Carolina, n.d.). It’s really interesting to me that many of the criticisms suggest that pickleball doesn’t belong in a residential neighborhood(Global News, 2024), but that overlooks how important accessibility is for older adults. As Pike points out, one of the barriers to aging in sports is accessibility due to physical and social isolation (Pike, 2015) . Having courts within walking distance is exactly what would make it easier for older adults to stay active and social without having to travel far. Some of the opposition seems to come from people who don’t personally use or value the space in that way. There’s a kind of unspoken assumption that if it doesn’t apply to them, it’s not important, which is a common expression of ageism of all generations, not necessarily caring about an issue if it doesn’t apply to their generation. This ties in closely with neoliberal thinking, where aging is portrayed as an individual responsibility. Older adults are encouraged to age well and stay healthy, but how can they do so without systemic support? The irony here is that while pickleball fits perfectly into this narrative of healthy aging but the public backlash makes it harder for seniors to access and benefit from it. In conclusion, I am having trouble viewing the side that is against this development, especially after completing this module. It seems like a great way to encourage a free, accessible sports space for the community, especially the aging population. I think it’s very unfortunate that people are unable to see the long-term good this could bring to the community. https://medicalhealthhumanities.com/2019/10/09/neoliberalizing-aging-successful-aging-paradigm/ https://peterboroughcurrents.ca/community/bonnerworth-redevelopment/
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