How Olympic Athletes Talking About Periods Will Change The Dialogue in Sports

When was the last time you had your period? Better yet, when was the last time that being on your period made you feel like laying in bed all day and doing absolutely nothing? For me, it was just a couple weeks ago that my menstrual cycle had me doubled over in pain as I canceled plans to drink half my weight in mimosas that I had been looking forward to for weeks. Luckily for me (and the rest of the world), I’m no Olympic athlete. In fact, I can barely kick a soccer ball, let alone swim a 100m race or do a flawless back handspring with two-and-a-half twists in the air and a blind landing, a la Simone Biles. Photo Credit: Jeremy White; composite image by Sergio Peçanha and Jon Huang So you’ve got your average woman with no athletic ability whatsoever (who can’t swing brunch when she’s got period cramps) — and then you’ve got women like Fu Yuanhui who, despite being on her period, got into the Olympic swimming pool and put her years of physical and mental training to the test as she competed in the 4x100m relay. After the race, an interviewer asked if […]