As some of the snow and sludge of winter start to fade away, it starts to feel enticing for the first time in months to leave the dorm to breathe in some fresh air, get your body moving, and, as my dad used to say to my siblings and I when we had spent the entire day playing Wii sports inside, “get the stink off ya.” That being said, it can sometimes be difficult to engage in this sort of movement, especially for people who have not experienced Geneseo pre-pandemic and aren’t sure of the resources that Geneseo has to offer. If any of these statements resonate with you, here are some tips and tricks for how to get out and get moving to ring in spring!

For generations, sports have been a breeding ground for toxic masculinity (a perception of masculinity that emphasizes strength and aggression to an extent that harms men and the way that society views them) and hyper-masculine identities. Thus, competition in sports for men and masculine-identifying athletes has become more significant than simply winning or losing; for many athletes, the outcome of a match can signify whether or not their masculinity is verified or rejected by sports journalists, fans, agents, coaches, and all other spectators of masculinity and its relationship to sports.

The origin of sports and the Olympics; the birth of art dedicated to the study of the human body; careful, incessant focus on the elegance of male athletes—Ancient Greek contributions to sports have been numerous and foundational to the culture that we associate with sports today. One such athletic element has been so thoroughly integrated into the public conscience that we frequently fail to evaluate the true scope of its impact—the romanticization of the male form.

On Saturday, Mar. 4, Russian gymnast Ivan Kuliak displayed a “Z” symbol on his uniform as he stood next to Ukrainian gymnast Illia Kovtun on the podium of a gymnastics World Cup event in Doha, Qatar. The symbol, displayed by Russian military vehicles utilized in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, has become widely associated with support for the invasion. Kuliak taped it to his uniform in place of the Russian flag, which was banned by the International Gymnastics Foundation (FIG).

On Feb. 14, 2022, U.S. sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson tweeted a post calling out discrepancies in Olympic and anti-doping regulations. The tweet was posted in response after Russian skater Kamila Valieva failed to pass a drug test but was still allowed to compete in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics—a privilege that Richardson, a Black athlete, was not afforded.