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Jessica Ennis on why girls don’t do sports

Jessica Ennis speaks to Radio Times about females in sport and why girls might be put off.

Her face has been plastered across screens all over the world, whilst her body has been the envy of the female populations, but Jessica Ennis tells Radio Times that she was worried when she started doing weight training that she’d end up too muscular.

Ennis has recently been named one of the five women in the 12-strong shortlist for Sports Personality of the Year. She feels strongly that more girls should get into sports.

“It’s important that girls aren’t afraid of sport,” she says. “I remember when I first started doing weight training, I didn’t want to be any good at it because I didn’t want to be all muscly. My coach sat me down and said that if I had more muscles than the average woman, but won an Olympic gold medal, it would be worth it. He was right, but it’s hard when you’re younger and want to look like everyone else.”

She knows that it is a worry for girls even now. “There’s a training group at home in Sheffield and some of the younger girls won’t do weights because their friends at school aren’t muscly and they don’t want to be either. I’m always saying to them that strong can look good. Sport is a good thing.”

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Posted by Tori Gibson.

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