Annika Olson

Traditional media gives significantly less media coverage to women athletes. With the addition and continuing use of social media, athletes are given the opportunity to choose what content they share with audiences. Past research on social media and self-presentation theory describes that when given the autonomy to create their own digital brand, female athletes share content that is more empowering to what the traditional media posts. Instead of over-sexualization and an emphasis on femininity, female athletes get to choose how they want to be perceived as an athlete. This article will demonstrate how USA Softball National Team members use Instagram to promote their own personal brand during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Through inductive and categorical coding of each individual post, the content was analyzed through the visual self-presentation theory lens and the personal brand that these athletes are promoting. Analysis shows that these athletes post images that celebrate their athleticism and accomplishments during the Olympics, both as individuals and as a team. Some athletes also use the platform to allow fans to take a peek behind the scenes of their family lives and hobbies. Athletes’ self-representation strategies are complex and provide new theoretical insight into research on sport and gender. Considering the underrepresentation in mainstream media of women’s sport coverage in, specifically softball, athletes' social media accounts provide another avenue to bring visibility to their sport.