Last March, Sedona Prince, a forward for the Oregon women’s basketball team, posted a video on TikTok highlighting the difference between weight rooms at the men’s and women’s NCAA tournaments. “If this issue doesn’t bother you,” Prince told the camera, “then you do.” The video went viral overnight, ultimately forcing the NCAA to not only provide women with a real weight room, but also closely provide examine inequalities between tournaments. In her own words, Prince talks about what she’s been up to, what she expects from the 2022 tournament, and what she hopes people take away from her video.
As Lindsay Schnell said
I didn’t have a specific plan in mind when I posted this video. What I knew was this: I was really, really angry.
Part of me didn’t think what I was seeing was real. We had heard and seen things on Twitter; The glaring difference in resources was a hot topic in the women’s basketball community, but for a while I thought it was a joke. But when we saw him before practice, it was like are you kidding me? There are 64 teams in one place, and only two people can use this “weight room” at a time. It was ridiculous.
As we grow up, we become dangerously accustomed to the inequalities between girls’ and boys’ sports. As you grow, this anger builds. Some of this is in the background, behind the smiles, friendships and celebrations that are so fundamental to the positive impact of sport for girls. Yet with the tournament weight room, the level of disrespect was so blatant.
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When I saw him, all this anger spread like a tidal wave – and it wasn’t just mine.
We already know we make less money, our food tastes a little worse, and our goody bags aren’t as cool. But then we see pictures of the NCAA men’s tournament bubble and they have this huge state-of-the-art weight complex and we have dumbbells and yoga mats. Really? We have worked our entire lives to experience March Madness. Is it supposed to be this big celebration of our season and our careers, and this is our reward? There are many layers to the failure that has presented itself to us. More than one person signed what we saw.
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So I post the video and go to sleep.
I woke up to a text from our sports information director: “Dude, what did you do?
Yes, it was a little scary to call the NCAA. It is the largest college sports organization. He East college sports, but when I woke up I had no idea what was going on. My phone was blowing up.
It felt like at one point, everyone was talking about it, everyone was paying attention to it, and everyone was shouting it – even people who weren’t interested in sports or had never seen basketball. women’s ball before. It was crazy, but incredible. It was this absolutely crazy moment. I started hearing from other players on other teams that their coaches and administration were telling them to keep quiet about it. I’ve never felt like this. Oregon and Kelly Graves, my coach, told me to keep talking and using my voice. I told my friends to do the same.
Women’s tournament should be a celebration, not an afterthought
I am often asked what changes I want to see this year. My dream is simple: I want our March Madness — It’s good that we can finally call it that, by the way – to feel like a party. The model is there; you’ve seen it for men for years. I want that. I want us to feel special, instead of feeling like an afterthought. I want it to be like we imagined it when we were little kids dreaming of playing March Madness. Last year everyone was heartbroken. It can’t be like that this year.
So, frankly, I’ll know I made a real difference when we stop talking about this. That’s when we’ll know we’ve made real progress.
When everything happened, I heard from so many young girls. They sent me messages saying things like, “I’m 12 and I quit sports, but I’m going to start playing again now” or “I quit because I was bullied, but I’m going to go back.” These messages mean so much to me.
Sometimes I think about what I wanted in a role model growing up – someone who was gay and outspoken and awkward and weird and completely open and himself. Someone who would have said, “Hey, I’m a woman, I’m beautiful just the way I am – and I’m also a badass athlete.” » It would have meant so much to me. If I were younger and saw someone talking about inequity like this and witnessed their powerful response, it would have made me think, “Oh my God, that’s a such an important movement – I want to be part of it! I want to be with these women.” Maybe I did this for someone. Maybe I helped invite them.
I heard another gamer say recently that until I posted this video, he didn’t realize how powerful his voice was. I hope that’s what everyone takes away from this, especially women: that your voice matters and you can make a difference. If you’re passionate about something, if you see a problem, speak up.
When I think about it now, I realize that the story was happening at that time. We were living it – and I played a role. My video was the first domino to fall and the wave it produced continues to roll. What this also helped me realize is that if we want change for women in sport, we have to demand it. Change will not come from above. It must start with us.
And if we collectively take responsibility for its momentum, they will not be able to stop us.
Follow Sedona Prince on Twitter: @sedonaprince_
