Photo shared by Ebrar Karakurt on Instagram (@ebrarkarakurt18)
by Eylül Begüm Sağlam, PhD student in
Political Science and a 2023-24 Research Assistant at the European Union Center
Türkiye’s women’s national volleyball team had crowning achievements in this season by gaining consecutive victories in both the FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship and the Women's European Volleyball Championship. As the team reached the top in the FIVB Women’s Volleyball World Ranking, reactions to these victories by the public were twofold: on the one hand, the women’s team received considerable recognition; on the other hand, these victories have been debated within the context of an alleged clash between Islamic values and the LGBTIQ+ community. This blog aims to elaborate on the politicization of volleyball and why it is essential for understanding politics in Türkiye.
Origins of the Story:
To run the tape back, the first considerable tension arose following the 2020 Olympic Games. One of the youngest players on the volleyball team, Ebrar Karakurt, known as the opposite hitter at the 2020 Olympics, shared a photo with her then-girlfriend on social media. Though not openly stated by her, Karakurt’s sexual orientation has been a topic of debate by many on social media which then turned into a smear campaign against the player. Following several successive victories of the women’s national volleyball team in 2023, this issue gained more traction when Karakurt replied to a critical comment she received on social media. Because the owner of the critical comment was portraying himself as “Abdul Hamid II,” one of the late-era Sultans of the Ottoman Empire and a symbolic figure for the proponents of Islamic Ottoman nostalgia, Karakurt’s reply was perceived as an attack against national and religious values in the country. Though the hatred seems to circle around Karakurt and her sexual orientation, it also stems from other criticisms toward the volleyball team such as the clothing of the women during matches or on the other side, criticisms related to the withholding the praise the team deserved as the heroes of such a huge accomplishment compared to many other men’s national teams. One instance of these debates emerged when team members flew on an economy class flight after their Women's European Volleyball Championship. As many members of the women’s national volleyball team attributed the latest victories to the founder of the Republic, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who became a unifying symbol for many of the proponents of a secular state, the issue extended beyond that of a national victory and instead became yet another topic widening the gulf between the secular and religious camps in Türkiye.
Why is Volleyball Political:
There are three main reasons why women’s volleyball gets political in the context of Türkiye. Firstly, volleyball is one of the few sports which does not necessarily incorporate a socio-economic barrier: it is enjoyed by a wide array of socio-economic backgrounds, and mostly accessible to girls coming from poor households. Second, the international prominence of the women’s volleyball team opens up new avenues for Türkiye’s cultural image to evolve in a more secular and European direction. This also helps explain why Türkiye’s victory in the Women's European Volleyball Championship received more media coverage than the FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship. This victory was also an extra validation of success such that receiving a gold medal in the FIVB Volleyball Women's World Championship could not be reduced to a coincidence by critics. Furthermore, the amount of attention paid by the people and domestic media to the Women's European Volleyball Championship was a signal of embracement of European identity as well as locating Türkiye’s socio-cultural belongingness to Europe in a regional sense. Lastly, the representation of LGBTIQ+ identities that took place in the persona of Ebrar Karakurt opened another arena for discussing queer politics in a wider realm which had been largely left on the shelf after Türkiye’s withdrawal from the İstanbul Convention.
Hope and Volleyball: Where to Next?
Despite
the polarizing debates surrounding the team, the consecutive victories of Türkiye’s
women’s national volleyball team were celebrated all around the country, even
watched from the big screens put on the streets, for the successes of the
national women’s volleyball team means more than a mere professional victory. Their
victories introduced a glimpse of hope, albeit miniscule, for providing unity
in an already polarized country. The days ahead will show whether this glimpse
will turn into a crystal-clear view for Türkiye or not.
REFERENCES:
Karakurt, Ebrar (@ebrarkarakurt18). 2023. "Herkesi böyle kucaklıyorum. Birleşerek kazanacağız, ayrışarak değil." Instagram photo, September 3, 2023. https://www.instagram.com/p/Cwv9LEjICYQ/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
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