PETALING JAYA, Feb 14 — The Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 is just over five months away.
Soon, the metropolis of Tokyo will be transformed into the globe’s biggest competitive arena as primed athletes from all over the world gather to compete for those iconic Olympic medals.
Competition — we strive in and celebrate it when it pushes us to work harder, go farther, and get stronger, but there is one place where competition bares its claws and tears us down. One place where it is no longer healthy— in beauty.
Conventional and restrictive beauty ideals have been determining how one should look, think, feel and even act, to be considered beautiful — standards that women all over the world feel they have to measure up to.
Nobody signs up for this type of competition, and yet, society dictates everyone’s participation in it, inadvertently empowering and perpetuating these unrealistic, unrepresentative and often unhealthy beauty standards.
With the world anticipating the sporting event of the year, SK-II has joined hands with some of the world’s leading female athletes to shatter these toxic competitions in beauty that no one signs up for, declaring that beauty is #NOCOMPETITION.
Together with world-class athletes such as Simone Biles, the world’s most decorated gymnast; Liu Xiang, world-record holder swimmer; Ishikawa Kasumi, table tennis player and two-time Olympic medalist; Ayaka Takahashi and Misaki Matsutomo, badminton duo and Olympic gold medalists; Mahina Maeda, surfer; and Japan’s national volleyball team Hinotori Nippon, SK-II aims to inspire women around the world to give beauty their own definition and break free from the pressures of these toxic beauty competitions.
The athletes took to social media to share their personal experiences with toxic beauty competitions, and to send a powerful message that they will not be competing in beauty anymore.
Biles, for example, despite all that was against her, has beaten the odds time and time again to become a world-renowned athlete and the most decorated gymnast of all time.
Having admitted to letting haters get to her at times, the athlete is choosing to stand up for herself and pave the way for others who have faced similar situations to rise above the toxic beauty culture.
Surfer Mahina Maeda declares to live by her own beauty rules, away from the toxic standards society puts on her when it comes to beauty. She vows to continue pushing to be a better, faster and stronger version of herself on the surfboard and stands strongly for #NOCOMPETITION in beauty.
Despite expectations and pressures that have led to growing self-doubt, table tennis player Kasumi Ishikawa aims to fight against societal expectations and trust in her own ability, pushing herself to perform to her best ability at the upcoming Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
Hinotori Nippon, Japan’s national volleyball team, has been a topic of discussion with comments on their height and strength not being enough to compete in a sport like Volleyball, which is dominated by bigger, taller players.
The team shows resilience and determination in their declaration, seeking strength within themselves and surpass their abilities together without limits.
Badminton women’s doubles duo Ayaka Takahashi and Misaki Matsutomo, who have been playing together for ten years, seek strength in their long-standing connection and mutual support between themselves to triumph regardless of external pressures and expectations.
These exemplary athletes, their inspiring stories, and the strength in their bold declarations highlight SK-II’s goal with #NOCOMPETITION: to challenge one and all to break away from unhealthy, toxic beauty competitions they did not sign up for, and rising beyond to find out what they can truly achieve.
We believe that the campaign could not have come at a better time to serve as a reminder in our increasingly competitive world, where many people find themselves trapped in never-ending competitions to look, feel and act in often unattainable ways that society deems to be ‘beautiful’.
#NOCOMPETITION is a call for all to take a step back, see the toxicity in such unsolicited competitions in our lives, and to challenge them and regain our rightful freedom to define what beauty truly means to each of us.
If you’re keen to join SK-II and these athletes and take a stand in shattering these toxic beauty competitions, visit the #NOCOMPETITION website to find out more and stay updated on the latest, exciting news from the campaign.
*This article is brought to you by SK-II.
