Here is the next suggestion from our Suggestion Box. Make sure you keep those suggestions rolling in. You can read or add comments to this suggestion by simply clicking on "Comments" at the bottom of this post. Enjoy.Suggestion: "I think that at the nationals, trophys should be given to the top mixed (mens & womens) team and the top female team as women are at a disadvantage compared to men where it is becoming increasingly clear that to do well at the top level you need to be a male to do well at the Nats. Given that it costs 3-4 hundred notes for the weekend, women are increasingly just making up the no's and they need to be recognised somehow." No name.
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Cheers, Tom.
7 comments:
The reason women are disadvantaged in NZ is because we never seem to have the same weather on 2 consecutive days. The nationals reinforced this. On day 1 Lee and I threw the cosh 10 metres against any team with females and watched as they struggled to get out to 9 metres on the dung heap that masqueraded as a piste. The result is that we qualified 6th on the first day - great for us, but I have to confess, it was not because we were a more skilled team, we were simply stronger meaning we could throw longer, and this is not what petanque should be about. I have had a female partner at the nationals until this year as it was clear to me that we were no longer going to compete. Hence my suggestion that we recognise womens or mixed teams. 2 extra prizes will not turn us into the Hillary Commission.
If not then NZ could/should look at a 9 meter max for the cosh on a wet day, or just bite the bullet and sort out an indoor facility. If the NZPA made an indoor facility a national priority in a strategic plan, hell, I'd pay $50 for my NZPA fee. I don't have a fixed position on seperate competitions for men and women but I'm pretty sure that under the current situation we are not going to see a woman win the National Doubles, and are highly unlikely to see one win the Triples - time will bear me at, but I would put money on this if I could. Cheers, Maurice
.As a result of what Maurice has written I have modified my original comment (I have toned it down). This means that my comment has moved out of sequence (from being the first comment it is now the second comment).
It would be interesting to know why people think women are at a disadvantage when it comes to competing in Petanque tournaments. Are we now saying that a triples team with one female is disadvantaged? I hold the view (rightly or wrongly) that a woman can throw a boule of around 700 grams, as well as a man. If I am wrong in this, then a female Petanque player is indeed at a disadvantage.
From what I have seen so far, prizes are given out for many categories. If we are going to add even more by incorporating "top women" and top "mixed teams" - where do we stop. If we see female players as disadvantaged, which grouping is next. Prize giving is going to take a long time.
I firmly believe that one becomes a top player through talent and hard work.
I have always regarded the separate female tournaments in NZ as a bad move (OK for weight lifting tournaments). This in my view just perpetuates the conservative and outmoded European Petanque male administrators attitudes. I believe that separate female tournaments is bad psychology and detrimental, long-term.
Cheers, Tom van B.
Interesting to see the organisers of the NZ Open have adopted Maurice's suggestion to the letter.
The Auckland Open (now the NZ Open) has been run this way for at least a couple of years now - so not really a reflection on what Maurice is saying. Its more to do with the fact that in French Polynesia, the games are played this way, due to the major European influence, as you pointed out Tom.
As a member of the probably the only all women team to have won a mixed tournament - I can see both sides of the argument. Fortunately much of what Maurice has to say, doesn't really apply to me as a player, as I don't fit the physiological profile of the average female player. But yes I can see his point, as I have used the same tactics against other players (not always female) on many occasions - even against Maurice himself.
Personally - I find the all women tournaments that I have attended in Wgtn generally boring affairs. Occasionally you will get a game that is a true challenge, but a lot of time it isn't. And if you shoot a lot, it isn't always to your advantage - as over the years I've had plenty of comments from other women players about playing too aggressively... which you don't get in mixed tournaments.
However I have noticed a tendency for a lot of new women players to try their first competition at the women only events - which if it results in them playing more competition over-all, isn't necessarily a bad thing. For more competitive players like myself however, they are very limited in scope.
With regards to prizes for top ranked female players/teams - I think Danila and I have shown that women can win mixed tournaments, and others like Sharon Cannon and Liz Rocks have made finals (albeit with a male team member), so I'm not sure if there is an inherent value in such a prize.
However in saying that, from my personal observation the PNZ seems to be moving the game to where there is a distinction between the two sexes playing together, it maybe such a prize for national events needs to be looked at.
And - yes the PNZ need to start doing something about an indoor venue for national events. Maybe we should approach the NZ Kennel Club and hire their venue for nationals?
-Margret
Interesting comments about womens' play. I believe women are at some disadvantage, more through their motor/timing skills than strength. In many other ball-skill sports women don't play to the same level as the best men - such as golf or baseball. However a talented and smartly trained women petanque player in NZ would be able to beat the majority of male players. They would only struggle when they came up against talented and smartly trained male players.
The role of women only tournaments is a really tricky one.
After having the totally opposite view I now believe it is very important that if a women player wants to be very good, that she must play some of her tournaments in women only teams.
At the same time I think it would be a backward step to have segregated mens and womens games as the `norm' in our sport in NZ, as they do in Europe (and pacific islands, and asia).
I think it's good to have one womens only tournament per season in each region, and I could possibly support one of our nationals (perhaps the doubles) with a womens' division/tournament. It would be a ferocious competition.
And Margret, it's always been the NZ Open. It's only been called the Auckland Open if you don't live in Auckland!
"....I believe women are at some disadvantage, more through their motor/timing skills than strength. In many other ball-skill sports women don't play to the same level as the best men - such as golf or baseball"
The above statement from the previous contributor has two element that need to be challenged. Are "motor/timing skills" less developed in women? Is this an accepted theory?
The second part is a little misleading, as it is well known that women do not have the physical strength to perform at the same level as men in sports such as tennis, golf or baseball.
Oh for goodness sake, come on. No way are women disadvantaged playing petanque. I get beaten by them all the time!!
Next someone will be wanting
top left hander
top right hander
top vegetarian (lacto ovo and vegan)
top person outside auckland
top bald person
top person without own teeth
top person who was once a woman
top person who wants to be a woman
top newlywed (they'll have no bloddy strength at all)
top person born on the 29th of April 1956
top person who doesn't play at Herne Bay
If you want to see equality in action come to my house and watch my wife do an oil change while I make you scones.
Who said
"Women who strive to be equal to men, lack ambition"?
cheeky buggars!!
Graeme Burnard
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