Female Athletes Are Furious With Sydney Sweeney

Sydney Sweeney's new sports-gambling ad is getting plenty of views—and a wave of backlash from women in sports. The Euphoria star appears mostly nude in the promo for Novig, a prediction platform she partly owns, using sports equipment to cover herself while she "pretends to play several different sports," per the Guardian. Female athletes were quick to respond, blasting the ad as objectifying women at a time when women in sport still have to fight to be taken seriously. Describing the spot as a "massive step backwards," former UCLA gymnast Gracie Kramer posted a viral montage of her own competitions, captioned, "this is what a woman in sports looks like," with hundreds of others soon jumping on the trend.

Retired Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus, a four-time Olympic gold medalist, said she was "infuriated" by what she saw as "a kick in the face to every woman who has dedicated her life to perfecting her craft." Canadian skier Cassidy Gray labeled the spot "idiotic," arguing women in sports continue to be "sexualized or not taken seriously," per NBC News. British sprinter Amy Hunt even called out Sweeney following a race at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship. "Sydney Sweeney, this is what women in sport look like," she said, per the BBC. "Muscles. Hard work, blood, sweat, tears." Sweeney and Novig haven't publicly addressed the criticism, though Sweeney did share photos of other athletes posing nude, "appearing to suggest hypocrisy," per the BBC.