I want to add two comments to this thread.
About literary prizes
in my country, that has a decent tradition and a normal level of fruition, there are several literary prizes. I make a point of honor not to read the books that are acclaimed, and to look with suspicion at the laureates. I got the impression that the prizes are in large part a PR/marketing operation, and in the remaining part maneuvers of territorial occupation by "political" sects. "political" is intended in the most unspecified sense. "sects" literary (a pun)
I wonder if in US, Commonwealth and Scandinavia these observations could be shared and in which measure. I tend to trust more those than the Latins, but somehow I am skeptical.
About gender in art and professions
This thread is about literary prizes, but it might be that my comment that addresses more general situations is appropriate.
After so many years of struggles, after so many of my years spent assisting to the struggle and often being personally involved in it, like everybody else, I reached a personal conclusion.
It is better to forget about gender and it is better to let things go without any consideration for it.
Example from real life
Spoiler:
I am involved in a powerful professional organization, international and very influential. There are much less women than men in that profession, although the discrepancy in number is not matched by a discrepancy in quality. Since a number of years the powers to be have decided to promote some women to key positions. Nothing very exciting or over influential, just session chairs at conferences. Not because they were or are outstanding (they are not), but because of a sort of gender quota. I have the fortune, the honor and the pleasure of being a very good friend of one of those. We discussed the situation more than once. Obviously she was pleased with herself and enjoyed the power she thought she had, she also performed her functions efficiently and sensibly, but she regretted having been given the position because of gender. She could not refuse it, because of her position in the company where she worked. So all in all for her it was bad, at least that what she felt. The only one who thought to have gained were the powers to be, in terms of supposed image, at the expenses of a really nice person, to which a morsel was given in exchange of a little part of her integrity. Bad stuff. Some times it is better to be invisible.