Late Saturday night (July 25), beloved singer, songwriter and pop icon, Pink, took to Twitter to express her support for the Norwegian women’s beach handball team after they were slapped with fines for protesting the league’s dress code.
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The whole episode began earlier last week when the Norwegian team was playing Spain in a bronze medal match at the European Beach Handball Championships in Bulgaria. Choosing to forgo the dated rules for women’s clothing—which demand each player wear a bikini bottom—the team wore shorts instead. As a result, the European Handball Federation (EHF) imposed a fine of €1,500 (around $1,700) on the team.
“I’m VERY proud of the Norwegian female beach handball team FOR PROTESTING THE VERY SEXIST RULES ABOUT THEIR ‘uniform,’” Pink tweeted. “The European handball federation SHOULD BE FINED FOR SEXISM. Good on ya, ladies. I’ll be happy to pay your fines for you. Keep it up.”
Currently, the regulations stipulated by the International Handball Federation (IHF) state that women’s teams must wear “identical bikini bottoms” with a “close fit” and “an upward angle toward the top of the leg,” noting that the maximum side width allowed is 10 centimeters (just under 4 inches). Male players, on the other hand, can wear any pair of shorts so long as they’re not “too baggy” and remain 10 centimeters above their kneecaps.
This isn’t the first time Pink’s used her platform as a vehicle for positive change. In the past, she’s been outspoken on everything from gender to mental health to politics and more, highlighting the ever-fascinating role musicians play now that social media has allowed them the opportunity to become such active personalities in our lives. Speaking to her 31.6 million followers on Twitter alone, Pink often opts to use her voice to share uplifting messages—and this time, the results have been almost immediate.
After Pink’s tweet went viral over the weekend, Michael Wiederer, the president of EHF, responded with a statement. “The EHF acknowledges the position of the players involved and further steps towards change, in close coordination with the International Handball Federation, have been and are in motion,” he said. “We are very much aware of the attention the topic has received over the past days, and while changes cannot happen overnight, we are fully committed that something good comes out of this situation right now which is why the EHF has donated the fine for a good cause promoting equality in sports.”
Pink has used her platform to advocate for gender equality for years—watch the video for her 2006 hit “Stupid Girls” below:
