Clothes and caps: An exploration of the thing-power of objects and activism at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

Abstract

Building upon a rich body of literature around politics and the Olympics, this article explores the role of objects in political activism and protest at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Inspired by new materialist theory, Jane Bennett's vital materialism, and her concept of thing-power (2010), this research thinks about the ways in which objects in the Tokyo 2020 games were lively and agentic players in developing assemblages and discussions around social inequalities at the Games. To accomplish this, the project conducted a thematic analysis of international popular press published during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics to explore the thing-power of two objects (unitards and a swimming cap). In so doing, this article explores the ways in which objects were integral actants and helped ignite conversations around gender, the sexualization of female athletes, and the racism and exclusionary practices of elite swimming. The article finishes with a discussion of the thing-power of objects and how a different ontological approach (i.e. one that values nonhuman matter) has implications for athlete protest, policy development, and addressing social inequalities and injustices within sport.