This week in Japan, a sports clothing manufacturer announced it was testing a new sportswear line at the Paris Olympics. The clothing doesn’t aim to make athletes more comfortable or agile. Instead, it’s designed to protect female athletes from a chronic problem in women’s sports in Japan: men taking pictures of their undergarments with infrared photography.
Sexualizing of athletes: a years-long problem in Japan
While people laud Japan for its relatively low crime and safety, women often struggle to enjoy that sense of safety. One chronic issue is groping attacks, which go underreported – and which police often fail to take seriously when they are.
Another issue is non-consensual photography. Cases of non-consensual photos rose in 2023 to a record 5,700 incidents nationwide, with 80% of those crimes committed with smartphones. You can find signs in train stations throughout Japan – some warning women, others warning potential perps – about both types of attacks.
However, women athletes in Japan deal with their own unique form of sexual harassment. Some men show up to events featuring female athletes, not to enjoy the sport, but to take sexualized pictures of the competitors. In many cases, they explicitly target minors by showing up to take pics at middle and high school meets. They then post the photos anonymously on social media for other men to see – or, in some cases, sell them for profit.
Athletes themselves have spoken out in the press about how they find sexualized photography demeaning – and distracting. Former gymnast Tanaka Rie told TBS about how she could hear cameras clicking when she opened her legs to do a handstand on the parallel bars.
“I got angry and heated – those kind of emotions, you know? I thought, ‘I’m not competing here for you to take these sorts of pictures.'”
Local govs crack down on sexualized photos
In 2023, Japan passed a new law regulating nonconsensual photography. However, it didn’t include taking photos of female athletes with sexual intent, which the government deemed a grey area. In response, several local governments, such as Fukuoka Prefecture, have passed ordinances declaring picture taking of female athletes with sexual intent a form of sexual assault.
Last year, Kyoto filed charges against a 39-year-old public employee for persistently taking photos of the lower half of female athlete’s bodies as well as their breasts at the all-country Ekiden race. The man explicitly targeted high school and college athletes. Authorities found around 180 images in his camera when they arrested him. Kyoto previously prosecuted another man for a similar crime in 2021.
The infrared photography problem
However, some men have taken illicit photos of female athletes to a whole other level. They use infrared photography, which picks up heat signatures. The cameras pick up signatures transferred through undergarments. That means if the athlete’s uniform is thin enough, voyeurs can snap pics showing the contours of their underwear.
Early reports of this form of assault go back to the start of the decade. A 2020 article in President ONLINE notes that, even then, some prefectures in Japan had moved to ban infrared photography altogether in a bid to keep adult and minor athletes safe. In 2021, former volleyball player Ootomo Ai said she’d fallen victim to infrared photos, as well as people trying to take photos in or near the women’s bathroom.
Sportswear manufacturer Cramer Japan reports fielding inquiries about infrared photography since 2022. At the time, the company said it was looking into designs to help protect female athletes from this new type of attack.
Mizuno’s anti-infrared clothing in use at Paris Olympics
While banning photography at sporting events in Japan helps, event organizers can’t catch every instance of illicit photography. It also doesn’t help athletes when they’re competing outside of Japan.
To give female athletes an additional layer of protection, Japanese sports clothing manufacturer Mizuno this week announced a new “anti-infrared” line of competitive sportswear. According to the manufacturer’s site, the new clothing uses material designed to absorb light in the infrared range. That renders the garment opaque not only under visible light. but under infrared light as well.
“Incorporating the newly developed infrared blocking fabric into sportswear can help reduce the number of athletes that fall victim to illicit infrared photography,” the company said in a statement on their Web site.
Mizuno is using the tech in the uniforms it’s designed for Japan’s volleyball team at next month’s Paris Summer Olympics. It’s incorporating the infrared-blocking fabric into the uniforms of six other teams, including the ping-pong and archery teams.
Mizuho’s new product is a good stopgap for times when event organizers can’t catch someone in the act of illicit photography. Sadly, it doesn’t address the root of the problem: men who think this behavior is acceptable in the first place.
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Sources
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Infrared blocking fabric developed to protect athletes from illicit photography. Mizuno
ใขในใชใผใ็ๆฎใฏใๆงๆดๅใใ็ฆๅฒก็่ญฐไผใๆกไพๆนๆญฃๆกๅฏๆฑบใ้ซๆ กๅฅณๅญ้ธๆใฎไปฃ็ไบบใใใพใใๆฐๆใกใชใใใฐ็ๆฎใใชใใ. Huffington Post Japan
ๅฅณๆงใขในใชใผใ็ๆฎๅ็ป่ฒฉๅฃฒใง้ฎๆ่ ใใตใคใใใญใใญใณใฐใๆค่จใใใในใใชใฎใ. News Post Seven
็ๆฎใใ้ธๆๅฎใใ่กฃ่ฃ ใโฆไฝๆ้ธๆใฏ่ชใ้็บใใใฌใผใๅ็ใซใฏ่ตคๅค็ทๅธๅใใๆฐ็ด ๆ. Yomiuri Shimbun
ๅฅณๆง้ธไธใขในใชใผใ่ตคๅค็ท็ๆฎใฎๅๅฃๆๅฃใ่้ฒๅบๅคใใฎใฆใงใข็ใฆใใ้ธๆใๆชใใฎใ๏ผNewsweek
ๅ จๅฝๅฅณๅญ้ง ไผใงไธๅ่บซๅผท่ชฟใใฆๆฎๅฝฑใใ็ใใไบฌ้ฝใฎๅ ฌๅๅกใๆธ้ก้ๆค. Asahi Shimbun
ๅ ใใฌใผใใผใซ้ธๆใปๅคงๅๆใ้ ใๆฎใใซ่ฆๆฉใใ้ๅป่ชใ ใๅฎขๅธญใใ่ตคๅค็ทใซใกใฉใงไธ็ใ้ใใใฆ็ๆฎใ. Abema Times
