Recently, officials have been talk about the crack down of ‘grunting’ from female tennis stars like Michelle Larcher De Brito and Maria Sharipova. But, what’s the big deal? It seems that the typical quiet you find in the stands is more the problem. Not to stir the pot on an age old tradition, but the tradition of silence amongst the fans at Wimbledon seems entirely too old fashioned and proper for today’s sports world. Not to be crass, but check the nosebleeds of most any other sport tournament (besides old man golf) and you’ll hear so much taunting, frustration and delight that you’ll go home feeling carthasis no matter how much you spent for tix.

These women being busted for their ‘expression’ is absurd. This type of focus is reminiscent of anything Kobe or Lebron would show on any given night, but somehow the same passion is distracting to the other players. Since when as psych-outs and ‘disruption’ not part of the game itself. I can often remember coach telling me to yell more to get my opponent off balance. Dear Ump, let these women play the game that they came to play, the way they were instructed and feels organic. Shift your attention to the stands where the entire sport would do well to focus on enlivening the audience, building the noise to a fever pitch at those crucial moments and the athlete will have to grunt to stay ‘in the game’.

Still, it is a jarring experience to hear the nearly constant grunts and yelps specially at the levels revealed by the ‘Gruntometer’:

According to the Daily Mail, Maria Sharapova’s grunts of 101 decibels approach that of a lion’s roar (110 decibels) and eclipse the legendary grunts of Monica Seles (93.2). Both Williams sisters surpass 80 decibels — Serena at 88.9 and Venus at 85.

The Mail reports that tennis officials are considering a crackdown on the grunters. Currently, players can have a point awarded against them if the umpire feels their grunts have hindered an opponent. New proposals to make noise hindrance part of the ITF’s code of conduct could potentially cause offenders to forfeit a whole game — or match.

Damn loud for sure, however, let the punishment fit the crime. Knock off a couple decibels if it seems forced, too obviously intended to kill the other’s concentration. If they can’t keep it in check, they lose a serve. If they keep it up, award the point. These women have made the game more exciting to watch, especially on television, as it is easier to ‘feel’ the action. I’d hope that this whole argument doesn’t get blown out of proportion, but it becomes obvious that the fragile tradition of Wimbledon is feeling its age, and that inevitably all the grunting teenagers will migrate to the sport, or invent a new one entirely.

(via Guardian via LA Times)