Olympic swimmer Cate Campbell opens up on body shaming in industry

Olympian Cate Campbell has opened up on body shaming in swimming saying weight was “always a topic of conversation”.

Olympic champion Cate Campbell says the obsession with the weight of female swimmers was real and many male coaches believe “the skinnier the better”.

In her new book with swimming sister Bronte, Campbell confirms girls were told to use smaller plates to stop overeating and were subjected to weekly weigh-ins.

An exclusive extract from the book in stellar magazine on Sunday, the sisters give very personal insights into the sport they love — both good and those that need improving.

Olympic swimmer Cate Campbell has released a book with her sister, Bronte. Picture: Josh Woning

Emma McKeon, Meg Harris, Bronte Campbell and Cate Campbell won gold in the women's 4 x 100m freestyle relay at the Tokyo Olympics. Picture: Alex Coppel

In stellar, which appears inside the Sunday Telegraph, Cate Campbell says she started to believe in the obsession about weight.

“Weight was, and still is, always a topic of conversation on pool decks or in swim teams,” she says in stellar,

“On my first Olympic team in 2008, all the girls were specifically told to use smaller plates at dinner so we wouldn’t overeat.

“Swimmers in other programs were subjected to weekly weigh-ins – in front of their entire squads – and publicly admonished if they had gained even a few hundred grams.

“The general consensus from most other male coaches was: the skinnier the better.

“Some of this mindset had begun to rub off on me.”

The Campbell extract is part of a weekend’s worth of great reading in out magazines across the Saturday and Sunday Telegraphs, which includes the new Sydney Weekend tomorrow and stellar, body + soul, escape and The Binge Guide on Sunday.

A highlight of Sydney Weekend is the incredible story of a pilot who fell from the sky in a burning plane and lived — thanks to the bravery and expertise of farmer-cum-medico.

Originally published as Olympic swimmer Cate Campbell opens up on body shaming in industry