{"id":55540,"date":"2025-09-08T18:48:38","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T18:48:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/struggles-of-female-footballers-labelled-as-men-because-of-their-physique\/"},"modified":"2025-09-08T17:21:50","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T17:21:50","slug":"struggles-of-female-footballers-labelled-as-men-because-of-their-physique","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/struggles-of-female-footballers-labelled-as-men-because-of-their-physique\/","title":{"rendered":"Struggles of female footballers labelled as men because of their physique"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jacqueline Nyirahabimana, who plays for Muhazi WFC, and Sandrine Mutuyimana, a player for Inyemera WFC and the Rwanda women\u2019s national team, say they are often ridiculed over their bodies, with Jacqueline in particular targeted for having facial hair.<\/p>\n

At many football pitches where Jacqueline plays, fans gather to cheer her on. Yet some spectators question her gender, claiming she is not a woman because she shaves her facial hair and has small breasts. For Sandrine, her speed and football skills, combined with a lean physique, also lead many to doubt that she is female.<\/p>\n

In an interview with IGIHE, both players admitted that their appearance sometimes causes them embarrassment. They explained that constant remarks suggesting they are men make them feel uncomfortable, even though their passion for the game remains strong.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople often ask me, Jacqueline, why don\u2019t you have breasts, why do you have facial hair, why do you look like a boy? They wonder how I can play in women\u2019s football. But I was born this way. It\u2019s God who determines our bodies. No one can give themselves breasts. Everything comes from God, who created us,\u201d Jacqueline said.<\/p>\n

She added that while she ignores taunts during matches, she plays to inspire other girls with similar traits not to hide in shame.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe live in a peaceful country where there is security everywhere. I no longer feel the shame I used to. People may stare at me daily, but I\u2019ve accepted myself. I encourage others like me to also embrace who they are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jacqueline recalled that the stigma began years ago when she attended Nyakiganda Secondary School in Nyagatare District, where both teachers and students often questioned her gender because of her appearance.<\/p>\n

\u201cI urge others like me to be confident, because people\u2019s words cannot stop your progress. I also ask people to refrain from using hurtful language, calling someone a man when she is a girl. It\u2019s deeply painful and should stop,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Sandrine explained that while fans\u2019 stares do not disturb her during matches, she sometimes feels embarrassed off the field.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat hurts is when I walk in public and see people staring, whispering that I don\u2019t have breasts. It makes me feel bad because it\u2019s not my fault. I am only 18 years old, and I believe they will come with time. There\u2019s no reason to despair. To other girls like me, I say: don\u2019t be ashamed of your bodies. We didn\u2019t create ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both players appealed to the public to stop making derogatory remarks about girls with different physical traits. They encouraged young women with facial hair, deep voices, or other uncommon features to accept themselves and live confidently instead of hiding.<\/p>\n

\"Sandrine<\/figure>\n
\"Jacqueline<\/figure>\n
\"Jacqueline<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Two young women footballers in Rwanda have spoken out about the stigma they face from being labelled \u201cmen\u201d because of their physical appearance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131,"featured_media":2000094073,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[75],"byline":[170],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-55540","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","tag-homenews","byline-igihe"],"bylines":[{"id":170,"name":"IGIHE","slug":"igihe","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":8}],"contributors":[{"id":170,"name":"IGIHE","slug":"igihe","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":8}],"featured_image":{"id":2000094073,"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/whatsapp_image_2025-09-08_at_8.18_19_am-bed39.jpg","alt":"","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":0,"height":0,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/whatsapp_image_2025-09-08_at_8.18_19_am-bed39.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/whatsapp_image_2025-09-08_at_8.18_19_am-bed39.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/whatsapp_image_2025-09-08_at_8.18_19_am-bed39.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/whatsapp_image_2025-09-08_at_8.18_19_am-bed39.jpg","width":1,"height":1},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/whatsapp_image_2025-09-08_at_8.18_19_am-bed39.jpg","width":0,"height":0}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55540","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/131"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55540"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55540\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000094073"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55540"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55540"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55540"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=55540"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=55540"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}