Women in Sports

KAITLYN’S SPORT STORIES RECAP: MARCH 25

In this 17th edition, we learn more about the list of Canadian women’s college basketball players competing in the NCAA DI March Madness women’s tournament and where they hail from. We get updates on keeping up with women’s hockey players during the PWHL International Break, including tournaments, archived game footage, and an exciting award nomination. We also learn more about Canada Soccer’s latest gender equity initiative, AccelerateHer, a coaching program designed to improve the Canadian women’s soccer coaching landscape. Lastly, we learn more about recent research that reveals the positive effects that women athletes and role models have on young girls.

The stories of the week show young girls and women in sport and physical activity that:

  1. Girls and young women across Canada have role models and current and past players to look up to when pursuing their basketball hopes and dreams. Whether it be girls in Quebec, Alberta, Ontario, etc., current women’s college basketball players prove that there are pathways that allow them to continue competing in their sport.
  2. The recent updates for the PWHL coming up on an International Break show that the momentum that the league has picked up in a mere couple of months of existence shows that the remainder of the PWHL 2024 season is promising. The future of the league and the potential for women’s hockey are exciting, and there is a lot of potential for growth in Canada in the upcoming years.
  3. Canada Soccer’s latest gender equity initiative shows that much work and improvement are needed to achieve more equality in coaching in Canada. Their latest program is hoped to be a strong momentum builder that will help open space for women to pursue coaching in Canada.
  4. More research being available about the positive effect that women athletes have on fans and contributing to a growing participation rate for young girls in sports reinforces how vital it is to have proper marketing, exposure, sponsorship and other business practices in place for girls in sport and women in sports to benefit from fully.


Photo from Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

Canadian representation runs strong throughout NCAA DI March Madness women’s basketball run

The 2024 NCAA Division I March Madness women’s basketball tournament has kicked off, and there is an impressive influx of Canadian players to watch out for. 22 Canadian basketball players are competing in the 2024 women’s tournament. Below is the complete list of players and their hometowns, in no particular order.

Photo from PWHL

The latest from the PWHL: tournaments, archived games and an award nomination

The PWHL is approaching a league-wide International Break until April 18 for one reason: the 2024 International Ice Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) Women’s World Championship, which will take place from April 3 to April 14. Many PWHL players will compete during the Championship. The Team Canada roster can be viewed here. A pre-tournament game for Team Canada will be held in Kingston, Ontario, on Saturday, March 30, at 3:00 PM EST. Limited tickets remain and can be purchased here. The PWHL season run pauses at a moment that comes with exciting updates for the league.

Over 50 previous games of the 2024 PWHL season have been uploaded to the PWHL YouTube channel for fans to enjoy. This is a great alternative for fans who weren’t able to attend matches in person, such as the Battle on Bay Street or Takeover Weekend games hosted in Detroit, Michigan, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The PWHL is also up for a 2024 Sports Business Award nomination in the Sports Breakthrough of the Year category. The winners will be announced on Wednesday, May 22. To follow the announcement updates, click here. 

Photo from Canada Soccer

Canada Soccer launches AccelerateHER coaching program

Canada Soccer is furthering its gender equity initiatives, with the latest being a new coaching program called AccelerateHER. The program is designed to “provide comprehensive support to women coaches along a progressive development pathway aligned with the highest coaching standards.” 85 coaches who plan to pursue Coaching Diplomas will receive training within the program. Other program details include a mentorship component, a bursary to accommodate possible financial burdens and leadership opportunities. 

The program comes at a time when only 10% of women currently take up space in Canada’s Soccer Advanced Coach Education Program. With Project 8, the new women’s professional soccer league coming to Canada in 2025, Canada Soccer hopes to contribute to a growing landscape for Canadian women’s soccer. 

 

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Photo from Wikipedia

Research shows that over 50% of young girls are inspired to take up sports because of women athletes 

OnePoll conducted a study in affiliation with Scottish Gas, an official partner of the Scotland Women’s Rugby Team. 500 girls and women between the ages of 10 and 17 participated in the study. The research examined the positive connection between young girls and teenagers and professional women athletes and role models. 

The results of the study found that:

  • 65% of participants felt their personal confidence grew after they had seen successful women athletes 
    • 55% of participants felt like “they could do anything” after having exposure to women athletes
  • 38% of participants have felt inspired by women like their mom, sister, aunt, or another possibly lesser-known woman athlete who engages in physical activity and exercise
  • 46% of participants have seen a women’s sports game in person
  • 66% of participants feel that watching women athletes compete in a stadium or arena can positively influence them to play a sport themselves
  • 83% of participants believe women athletes are inspiring role models

 

Kaitlyn’s Sport Stories Recap are written by Kaitlyn Lehbert, a passionate and driven sport advocate for girls and women. Kaitlyn holds her Bachelor’s degree in Sports Management from Brock University. Learn more about Kaitlyn by clicking here!

 

 

Have a sport story you want to share? Contact info@fastandfemale.com and it may get featured in Kaitlyn’s next feature.

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