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The hand-clapping games are a symbol of girlhood. They are introduced in Chapter 4 during the fight between Rose Mueller and Tanya Maw. The hand-clapping games mirror the determined physicality of boxing and show how games are an essential social aspect of bonding. The novel will affirm this parallel at the very end when it shows two girls in the distant future, on a planet with six moons, who decide to fight over the lyrics of a certain hand-clapping game.

The ritualistic quality of hand-clapping games binds each player to their immediate predecessors, the older sisters who teach them the games. This suggests that every boxer is also connected to their predecessors, linking boxers in the far future to the boxers in the novel.

The tournament trophy symbolizes Gendered Exploitation in Women’s Sports. It exists as an antithesis to the world discus by representing the homogenization and reduction of the tournament contenders.

Traditionally, trophies are meant to symbolize a champion’s achievement, singling them out from their competitors. However, when the trophy appears in Chapter 8, Rose sees that it is too small to hold water, making it decorative in nature rather than functional. She also sees that it was made cheaply from plastic—a generic and poorly made object. It suggests that the young women champions are not important enough to really celebrate or value. The sport’s contenders risk their bodies for the entertainment of others, but are reduced to oblivion, receiving little from the league in return for their work and their skills.