A swimming club in China is facing accusations of discrimination by only admitting women of “high quality” as members. - Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock
BEIJING: A swimming club in China that only allows educated women under 45 to register as members because they have “a high IQ and personal qualities”, has sparked a heated discussion online.
The 2049 International Swimming and Diving Training Centre in eastern China’s Jiangsu province promoted its bimonthly membership for “knowledgeable ladies” on local listing app Dazhong Dianping.
The listing said only women under 45 who have a bachelor’s degree would be eligible for the membership priced at 576 yuan (US$80).
Management at the club told the mainland media outlet Modern Express on August 21 that they believe educated people “have a high IQ and certain personal qualities and understand social order”.
The member of staff, who did not reveal his name, said the lockers in the club’s changing rooms did not have locks.
Therefore, selecting members of a “high quality” would maintain the safety of all members and their belongings.
The club was opened in 2017, and was branded as a facility for ladies.
It provides women-only group swimming and diving classes, but offers one-on-one classes to men, according to a customer.
Women-only gyms have opened in China’s first and second-tier cities in recent years as workout environments where females are free from male gaze and harassment.
They have been well received, but the educational barrier, along with the affirmative gender action this club demands, has not.
“I cannot even swim without a bachelor’s degree?” one person said.
“Better education does not mean better moral quality,” another said on Weibo.
However, a third supported the club: “The business can select its customers just as the customer can select businesses. It is fine to make rules as long as they are legal,” he said.
A lawyer from Jiangsu Zhenyu Law Firm, Liu Jian, said the club may have violated the Law on Protection of the Rights and Interests of Consumers, which requires that customers have the right to obtain fair deals.
The local culture, sports and tourism bureau has asked the club to remove the membership rules.
A member of staff told Modern Express that the bureau suggested the club designs its activities and slogans “appropriately, without generating misunderstandings”.
Some suggested the club use a smart booking system to maintain its preferences without affecting other customers’ rights. - South China Morning Post
