Growing the profile and reaping the benefits of women's sport

David Callan, Communications Officer at the Alliance, has blogged about growing profile of women's sport and how the sector can benefit from increasing the profile further.

There’s no doubting that there have been some real landmarks for women’s sport this year.

In recent months we’ve seen a woman get back behind the wheel of an F1 car for the first time since 1992. The Women’s Boat Race took place on the same day and on the same course as the men’s for the first time. Andy Murray has hired a female coach and we’ve seen major success for female athletes and teams, making household names of the likes of Katarina Johnson-Thompson and Charlotte Dujardin among others.

Away from the playing area, there have also been a number of fantastic initiatives launched to get more women and girls involved and interested in sport. This is a key reason behind the inaugural Women’s Sport Week and Sally Hancock, Chair of Women in Sport, has kindly written a blog for us about what the week hopes to achieve and will encompass.

But Women’s Sport Week isn’t the only initiative that’s championing women’s sport.

At the Alliance we’re been supporting the Inspiring Women campaign. The campaign aims to empower girls to believe that they have a right to aspire to a career in whatever profession they choose, sport included. Our CEO and several female board members have already given time to talk to and encourage girls to pursue a career in sport. We’re delighted to have a blog from campaign founder Miriam Gonzalez on the matter.

We’ve also seen the phenomenal success of Sport England’s ‘This Girl Can’ campaign. Many of the barriers that put women off participating in sport stem from a fear of how they’ll be judged. This campaign firmly spreads the message that women can shake off the fear and embrace themselves and activity and most importantly, enjoy it. There is also a fantastic collective attitude that resonates from This Girl Can which will hopefully bring more women together and, as a group, keep them active on a regular basis.

A key aspect to developing women’s sport is the role of the media in promoting women’s sport, its developments, successes and latest news. If women’s sport has prominence in the media, so girls and women gain knowledge, develop interests, be inspired and ultimately, get involved with them at a grassroots or local level.

The Women’s Sports Trust recently held its #BeAGameChanger Awards, recognising individuals and organisations doing the most to progress women’s sport. Many of the awards centred around media coverage of women’s sport, a reflection of the importance of role the media has to play in increasing participation. As women’s sport gains prominence, more characters and role-models emerge, who in turn generate interest and debate about issues that are important to the development of women’s sport and role in society as a whole.

We’ve got a great blog from Michelle Moore from the Women’s Sport Trust on this matter.

As interest in women's sport grows, so do the opportunities to increase participation. At the Alliance, we are fully committed to pushing forward on both these fronts.

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