Rebecca Hopkins, Managing Director of sports PR agency ENS and Women's Sport Week steering group membmer, has blogged about the importance of collective engagement in making Women's Sport Week and initiatives like it a success.
The first week of June marks the first Women’s Sports Week and sees groups from government, broadcasters, sports bodies and commercial organizations come together to celebrate women’s sport at every level.
Whilst the week will, in part, focus on female sporting achievement and participation, from grassroots to elite, it has wider ambitions too. Also on the agenda are topics such as televising and investment in women’s sport, as well as promoting the idea that working in sport – either as a tracksuit or suit – is a viable career choice.
The ultimate aim of Women’s Sports Week is to be a catalyst of change, challenging the wider sports sector to think more inclusively about women’s sport and show that it is a serious force – competitively, visually and commercially – and deserves to be taken seriously.
The benchmark of a good idea is when someone says ‘but surely it exists already?’. So far that has been the overwhelming response to the concept of Women’s Sport Week but simply being a good idea is not enough, the week needs to prompt fresh thinking. This is why, if you share a belief in the value of women’s sport, your support is vital.
Women’s Sports Week has been timed to start an exciting summer of sport, including the FIFA Women’s World Cup, the Women’s Ashes and the Solheim Cup, and is being backed by leading sportswomen Katherine Grainger, Jessica Ennis-Hill, Stefanie Reid and Victoria Pendleton. Extensive media coverage is planned across all major media channels but, most importantly, it will be the people who are part of every day sport – both men and women – who collectively can make the most noise via social media.
The most effective way to participate in the week is to Tweet using the hashtag #WSW2015. Please use this to share positive images, point out challenging statistics or simply to state your support for the initiative.
Andy Warhol once said ‘They say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.’ For anyone wanting to be part of this exciting way of making a difference to and for women’s sport, please get Tweeting between 1st and 7th June.
For more information visit www.womenssportweek.org
Rebecca Hopkins is the MD of sports PR agency, ENS, owner of the Sports Technology Awards and serves on the Women’s Sports Week steering group. Twitter @sports_pr Website www.ensltd.com
