- Viewers have criticised the change in sport in Paris
- The events will take place in the stadium located at the foot of the Eiffel Tower.
Angry Olympics spectators have been branded sexist after taking to social media to rage over female beach volleyball players swapping bikini bottoms for leggings in Paris.
Previously, beach volleyball players were required to wear bikini bottoms and the International Olympic Committee even mandated how skimpy they had to be, with official rules stating they could be no more than 7cm at the sides.
Those rules were dropped for the Paris Olympics, with athletes now allowed to compete in more modest tights, sparking an uproar on social media.
Many viewers have been branded “sexist” and “perverted” for complaining about the lack of bikini bottoms simply because they wanted to gawk at the athletes.
“I had to watch men dressed as women at the opening ceremony and now women in leggings at beach volleyball. Worst Olympics ever,” one posted.
“Add that to the list of reasons I don’t watch the Olympics,” another fumed.
“Wearing leggings to beach volleyball is a fucking crime,” another raged.
There were also many offensive and misogynistic comments that the Mail decided not to publish.
The Czech Republic was one of the nations that took advantage of the rule change to wear leggings as temperatures remained low during the Parisian summer (Marie-Sara Stochlova, pictured)
Angry Olympic fans took to social media to complain about the switch to beach volleyball, while other viewers branded their complaints sexist whining.
Australians Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho Del Solar kept their bikini bottoms on but wore modest clothing to protect themselves from the French cold.
Other viewers were quick to respond, calling the mostly male social media users who complained about the change “sexist.”
“About time women’s volleyball uniforms matched men’s… the most sexist uniforms of any Olympics were those of women’s beach volleyball,” posted one.
“Congratulations to the female athletes who fought so hard to be able to wear pants while playing beach volleyball,” added a second modesty fan.
“And to all the perverts who are disappointed… yuck. Go away. You didn’t want to be seen anyway.”
So why was the dress code for beach volleyball changed in the first place?
Some viewers have pointed out that the weather in France is not suitable for the skimpy bikinis of the past.
“The temperature at night was around 15-18°C and it was raining all day. It was a bit cold at night,” one person explained.
“Look what all the staff on the pitch are wearing. It looks really cold. Australia were playing with jackets on,” added another.
American pair Sara Hughes and Kelly Cheng kept their previous uniform style despite unusually low temperatures in the Olympic city.
While women have traditionally worn bikinis in beach volleyball at the Olympics, men have been allowed to wear tank tops and shorts.
Others said the fact Australia was playing China may have influenced the choice of outfit.
“The weather is miserable, and it may also be simply because we are in China and there is more cultural modesty,” suggested one viewer.
More spectators applauded the move, saying it was more practical for the athletes.
“Volleyball players have talked at length about how those tiny bikini bottoms are a distraction to them because they are at constant risk of flying off when they dive into the sand. I’m surprised tights aren’t the norm,” one Reddit user said.
However, some believe it could simply be because athletes were tired of being objectified.
“It’s because they were tired of showing their vaginas on TV,” one posted.
Egyptian women took covering up to another level, wearing long sleeves and long pants along with hijabs because 90 percent of the population is Sunni Muslim.
But some nations still wear the bikinis of the past, leaving onlookers baffled.
“I’m confused about the women’s beach volleyball uniform. Some wear leggings. Others wear the micro bikini,” one posted.
