Author(s): BAI, Z., KIRK, D., Institution: SHAOGUAN UNIVERSITY, Country: CHINA, Abstract-ID: 520

Introduction
With the advance of the three waves of feminist movements, the discursive space for womens participation in sports has been broadened. China is a representative socialist country where the idea of gender equality has taken root. Sorting out Chinas socialist womens sports participation is of great significance to the development of womens sports in the world. This study examines high-level female sports researchers, coaches, and athletes in China over the past decade, aiming to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the changes in gender equality in Chinese sports and to enrichment of relevant research in the field.
Methods
We sampled journals run by the top five sports universities in China. Papers published in these journals in 2012 and 2023 were analyzed to collect data on the gender of the first author and the number of citations. Additionally, we collected gender data on coaches, athletes and gold medalists of the Chinese team at the 2012 and 2020 Olympic Games. Finally, SPSS25 was employed to statistically analyze the disparities among female sport researchers, coaches, athletes, and award-winning athletes from 2012 to 2023. The determination of citation counts was based on the consideration that highly cited literature constituted roughly 10% of the overall references.
Results
(1) In 2012 and 2023, the percentage of female first authors was 26.8% and 29.8% respectively, while the percentage of authors with high citation rates was 24.5% and 20.2% respectively, but none of them are significantly different. (2) In the 2012 and 2020 Olympics, the representation of female coaches comprised 15.9% and 24.2% respectively. The proportion of female athletes was 56.8% and 69.1% respectively, an increase of 12.3%. The proportion of women winning gold medals was 53.8% and 65.8% respectively, an increase of 12%.
Discussion
The percentage of female first authors in Chinese sport research is much lower than the 41.6% in previous physical education research and similar to the 24.8% in sport medicine research. The underrepresentation of women, particularly in highly cited works, may be linked to social norms in China favoring male industry leaders and inadequate support for female leaders. The increase in the proportion of female participants and gold medalists is closely related to Chinas hosting of the 2008 Summer Olympics and the upcoming 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. These two Olympic Games have effectively promoted gender equality and empowered female athletes. It is evident that Chinese women have made significant advancements in the sports arena over the past decade. However, there is room for further improvement in terms of academic researchers and coaches, as women currently account for less than 30%. This disparity can be diminished by increasing the number of female leaders and implementing policies that favor gender equality.