Michael Stich Hates Grunting, Says Wimbledon Women Only 'Sell Sex'

Grunting, for lack of a better word, in women's tennis doesn't bother me; it's an obvious sign of physical exertion and I may or may not find it attractive. But I'm not everyone, and I'm certainly not former Wimbledon champ Michael Stich, who appears fairly repulsed by the whole grunt thing.

Also, he firmly believes that the fine ladies who compete at Wimbledon are "just there to sell sex" which is why they should stop grunting (Honestly, Stich has to be the only one who somehow doesn't think Maria Sharapova's grunting is attractive in some aspect, right?)

The 40-year-old German said the noise detracted from the players' 'sex appeal'.

He said: 'Just play it back to the women. It sounds disgusting, ugly, unsexy!'

[...]'That's what they sell,' he told The Mail on Sunday. 'They want to look good, they pay attention to their looks and everything.'

So, Stich actually thinks that the women should sell sex and that by grunting they're hurting their image? Whaaaaa? Now, sexiness of grunting by women playing tennis aside, why the mess would Stich feel compelled to make these obviously sexist remarks to a national publication?

Does he need the attention? Is an anti-grunting campaign the staple of his Prime Minister platform in 2020? Or does he simply -- like many announcers and famous people -- have no sense of couth when it comes to discussing certain things publicly?

I'll go ahead and opt for "Option C." Although I would imagine that many of the women on tour might simply answer, "Go 'way!" One such is Serena Williams, who not only pointed out that sex does sell, but added that she's relatively unaware of how much grunting she does.

'I've never been one of the loudest grunters. I just play my game and sometimes I grunt and sometimes I don't.

'I'm not conscious when I'm doing it. I'm just zoned out. It doesn't really affect me if my opponent is [grunting].'

Harriett Foxwell of the Women's Sport and Fitness Foundation had a (theoretically) similar vewpoint that took a different approach:

'Unfortunately, commentary about female tennis players isn't always about their skill on court,' she said.

'Our wish is that rather than talking about what they are wearing or the noises they make, they are judged on their professional performance.'

And here's where I'll also point out that not only should Stich just keep his mouth shut, but even if women were trying to sell sex (and I'm certainly not trying to say they are) who is this guy to insult someone for showing up to work and trying to look their best?

I take a shower and dress nicely for work (almost) every day, mainly because if I didn't show up at the office looking at least reasonably acceptable, I probably wouldn't have a job. Dressing well is in the inherent benefit of every single person with a job; if it wasn't, we'd have legions of unshowered folks manning our world's cubicles.

And besides, Stich is essentially destroying his own argument by creating some sort of weird redundant, Catch-22 in which women are hurting their "sexy factor" by grunting by running with the presumption that they're doing it on purpose. Well, either that or he doesn't know what he's talking about and should probably look into a new line of work.