Sport a better attitude towards women

Picture Courtesy: Buff Club

August 5, 2014: As great as women are doing in the field of sports, they still aren’t given enough credit for their hard work and achievements. Women barely have any representation from sports governing bodies across the world. A report by Gender Balance in Global Sport Report has thrown new light at the prevalent disparity between genders in sports.

The report stated that even the top sports governing bodies including International Sports Federations and the National Olympic Committees across the world-have less than 20 per cent of women on their respective boards. Claire Braund is the Executive Director of Women on Boards, she talked about her concern regarding the status of sports playing women in the world. She said, “Sport has the power to change the lives of young women – opening up opportunities for leadership and development and transforming gender norms. It is equally important to have female role models in the corporate boxes and the boardrooms as it is to have those who represent their country.” She also added that if there were more women on top, it would really encourage more young athletes to come up. Under representation of women on top directly affects those who are still starting their career.

Currently, the selection process for the board does not take into consideration the required skills for the job. It instead relies completely on nomination and the prospective board members’ history with the sport. Braund believes that sports are capable of changing the life of young women and female role models would help them go a long way.

ORIGINAL SOURCE: Women on Boards

http://www.womenonboards.org.au/news/2014/media140707-sportreport.htm