Women in leadership are a problem (also) in basketball. And in sports in general

Al Giorno the GEAS coach said : “I immediately read many things that I didn't like. Comments and points of view, even out of place, that I don't think are ever addressed to male colleagues . People talk and say everything, without even knowing the person and the coach. It's a peculiarity, unfortunately, of our country. In the meantime the rest of the world moves forward, even in the NBA we have seen women enter the staffs of important franchises”.

And Cecilia Zandalasini , a forward for the Italian national team and the Golden State Valkyries in the WNBA, who also played for GEAS, also came to her defense. The basketball player, who led the Italian team in the FIBA ​​Women's EuroBasket group, told Repubblica: "In Italy, the fact that a woman can command an audience of men still has an effect (...). I would like to say something that seems obvious but isn't: that she has the right skills".

In short, the world of men's basketball is not ready for a female coach. It goes without saying that, on the other hand, in women's basketball (as in many other sports) there are male coaches and technicians. And they are numerous. So the excuse that the male and female versions of this sport are too different for Zanotti to aspire to lead the Germani quintets falls. Why then is it so difficult to accept a coach on the basketball benches?

Men's sport is perceived as "real", while women's sport is often portrayed as a secondary, almost amateur version . It's not just a question of media visibility or investment: it's a symbolic hierarchy . When a woman like Cinzia Zanotti is proposed to coach a men's team, her competence is not simply judged . Also because someone like her has skills to spare, with an impressive career both as a player (483 appearances and 6682 points in Serie A and 113 appearances and 1009 points in the national team) and as a coach (6 youth championships and a first team always in the top ranks). If a male coach with a similar CV had been proposed to lead a Serie A1 team, no one would probably have raised objections about her "preparation".