The Turkish women's national volleyball team's economy-class commercial flight to the United States to play in the 2024 FIVB Women's Volleyball Nations League has sparked a controversy that highlights sexism in Turkish sports. (Photo: Instagram/EdaErdemli)
The Turkish women's national volleyball team's economy-class flight to the United States on a commercial airline to play in the 2024 FIVB Women's Volleyball Nations League has sparked controversy in Turkey and highlighted sexism in Turkish sports.
Key players on the team, including Ebrar Karakurt, Zela Gunes and captain Eda Erdem, took to social media to express their dissatisfaction with the flying conditions in the United States, sparking a debate later on.
Karakurt alluded to the unequal treatment of national teams, suggesting that other teams, such as the underperforming men's national football team, often receive special air travel arrangements.
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The Turkish Volleyball Federation (TVF) has accused Turkish Airlines (THY) of making contradictory statements regarding travel arrangements.
THY is the official sponsor of the women's team.
The federation said regulations limited its ability to purchase business class tickets and asked THY for assistance, but THY reportedly said the federation only had 20 upgrades available per year, subject to flight availability.
The federation explained that regulations restrict the purchase of business class tickets and asked THY for assistance. THY reportedly said the federation only has 20 upgrades available per year, subject to flight availability. Those upgrades were not used on the team's May 26, 2024 flight.
Turkish Airlines spokesman Yahya Ustun countered by stressing that travel logistics and ticketing details are the responsibility of the federations, claiming that annual flight capacity plans for all sponsored federations are carried out at the beginning of the year.
The debate escalated when TVF accused THY of making false statements, claiming that the flight details had been communicated well in advance but that the upgrade had not been carried out. The federation reiterated that it was unable to purchase business class tickets due to regulatory constraints and stressed that its contract with THY was a barter contract involving the use of air tickets, not a monetary transaction.
Discrimination against women's teams
The incident is not unusual: the women's volleyball team frequently faces travel challenges despite its impressive track record, which includes world and European titles.
The team, known as the “Sultans of the Internet”, have faced similar issues before, sometimes being given business class seats at the last minute.
Further fueling the controversy, the women's volleyball team has not received the same recognition from government officials as the men's team: Unlike the other national teams, the women's champion team was not welcomed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after their victory.
Responding to criticism on social media, THY president Ahmet Borat promised to personally oversee travel arrangements for female athletes and promised to make any necessary adjustments to improve travel conditions in future.
As the women's volleyball team prepares for upcoming matches in the Nations League and the 2024 Paris Olympics, calls for equal treatment in the sporting world are growing louder.
