Dina Asher-Smith Wants Open Conversations About Periods & Sports Performance

If you want guidance on how to turn a loss into a win, look no further than British athlete Dina Asher-Smith. The sprinter, who recently lost out on a chance to bag the 100-metre gold medal at the European Championships, has used the incident to highlight the often-ignored issue of women’s health in sports. Asher-Smith, who had sustained a hamstring injury just last month, confirmed that the injury didn’t affect her performance. Per The Guardian, the 26-year-old athlete revealed that it was actually period-induced calf cramps that impacted her chance at the 100-metre race.

“It was just girl stuff,” she explained. “It’s just frustrating. It’s one of those things. It’s a shame because I’m in really good shape and I was really looking to come and run fast.”

The health of women athletes is an underrepresented issue that the world of sports tends to overlook. Athletes are expected to train, push their bodies, and perform competitively, despite the fact that periods physically affect a large proportion of people who menstruate, in various negative ways.

Asher-Smith directly called out this problem, urging for more research and understanding. “More people need to research it from a sports science perspective, because it’s huge. People don’t always talk about it, either,” she said candidly.

The celebrated sprinter gave an example of the lack of consideration people face when it comes to menstrual health. “Sometimes you see girls that have been so consistent, and there’s a random dip and behind-the-scenes they’ve been really struggling. Everybody else will go ‘What’s that? That’s random.’”

“We could just do with more funding. I feel if it was a men’s issue there would be a million different ways to combat things,” Asher-Smith concluded.

British tennis pro Alicia Barnett has also recently opened up about how it’s a struggle to play sports at a world-class level whilst on her period — not to mention also having to wear the all-white Wimbledon kit. “I think being on your period on the tour is hard enough, but to wear whites as well isn’t easy,” said Barnett.