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Sylvia Ma

A notable Chinese commentator’s query about whether female basketball players were wearing make-up during China’s clash with Spain has caused controversy on social media.
The incident came a day after similar comments by a Eurosport commentator saw him being stood down for future Games duties.
While Spain won the nail-biting basketball contest 90-89 on Sunday, it was comments coming from the commentary booth that ignited a heated online debate.
As the camera focused on a Chinese player wearing make-up, Yang Yi asked his co-commentator Chen Nan – a veteran basketball player – whether she wore make-up during games.

“No, we didn’t wear make-up back then. We valued natural beauty,” she responded.
The question sparked outrage on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, as “#women’s basketball commentator, players wearing make-up” soared to the top of the trending list.
In the Eurosport incident, the Daily Telegraph reported that Bob Ballard had come under attack on social media after he suggested females like “hanging around doing their make-up”.
He had been commentating on Australia’s swimming quartet of Emma McKeon, Shayna Jack, Mollie O’Callaghan and Meg Harris, who had just won the 4x100-metre freestyle relay.
“Well, the women [are] just finishing up,” he said about the team. “You know what women are like … hanging around, doing their make-up.”
Lizzie Simmonds, who was alongside Ballard on commentary duty, had described the comment as “outrageous”.
Professor Pragya Agarwal, a behavioural and data scientist, was among those to express immediate dismay, posting: “When will these people ever learn? Why aren’t they being given some training?”
After the clip was shared widely, Eurosport moved quickly to remove Ballard from all remaining events at the Olympics.
“During a segment of Eurosport’s coverage last night, commentator Bob Ballard made an inappropriate comment,” a statement from the broadcaster said. “To that end, he has been removed from our commentary roster with immediate effect.”

As female empowerment continues to grow in public discourse, discussions about athletes wearing make-up have become increasingly contentious, particularly following the controversy surrounding Chinese star hurdler Wu Yanni, whose make-up during races challenged traditional expectations of athletes.
“Instead of focusing on the game, the commentator turned to discuss female players’ make-up. How is this any different from men chatting about a female colleague’s outfit at work instead of concentrating on the job?” a Weibo user commented.
“When discussing men, the focus is on their abilities. In contrast, discussions about women often centre on their appearance, body, emotional state, and even details like hair colour and make-up are under the male gaze,” another wrote.
Some, however, argued that Yang’s question was simply a normal inquiry and the criticism is overblown.
In response to the backlash, Yang clarified in a post that his question was intended to be inquisitive rather than judgmental.
“Can’t I ask veteran Chen Nan whether her generation wore make-up or not? It’s OK to wear make-up or not, but can’t I just ask about it?” Yang wrote in his post.


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Incident comes in the wake of similar comments by a veteran British commentator that saw him being removed from covering the rest of the Games


Wu Yanni