By Jordan Bay

Panel addresses supporting women, girls in sport

Feb 26, 2019 | 11:29 AM

The Canada Winter Games provides an amazing opportunity for so many athletes and coaches, including women and girls who might otherwise not be involved in sport.

Monday night, the Coaching Association of Canada (CAC) held a panel discussion at Coach House in Athletes’ Village at RDC with a focus on keeping girls in sport, and supporting women in coaching.

Viki Harber, a former professor at the University of Alberta, says one thing the panel addressed was what factors lead to girls leaving sport.

“If we start with understanding why the heck they leave in the first place it’s a really good indicator of what are the kinds of things that are going on for them. We can make some revisions and encourage them to stay instead of exiting sport altogether. If we understand why they leave, that helps us create some strategies to address those and make them more likely to stay in.”

Harber also spoke to the Women in Coaching Canada Games Apprenticeship Program, and how it works to get females in coaching and to support them.

University Magazine

RDP ranked 17th among top culinary schools in Canada

1h ago

JANUARY 21 ONLY

Ponoka starting Christmas tree pick up in January

16h ago

Christmas and new years

Wednesday cart collection rescheduled due to statutory holidays

17h ago

“Women are less represented as coaches in the entire sports system, as well as sort of leadership positions. What can we do to enhance the presence so that coaches are getting the kind of training and support they require, and this is certainly something the Coaching Association of Canada has been doing with their women’s apprentice program, and have been quite intentional about finding young women who want to be coaches, and to help them advance and progress within their coaching pathway.”

Sheldon Kennedy, co-founder of Respect Group, echoed Harber on the importance of providing coaches with the resources they need.

“Our belief is that 98 per cent of coaches are there for the right reasons, and we need to give them the tools and the knowledge to understand maybe what kids might be bringing into the rink, or onto the field, or onto the poolside, and if they disclose to you something that happens in their personal life then you know what to do,” explained Kennedy, who also spoke at Monday’s panel discussion.

Respect Group has helped train hundreds of thousands of coaches over the past 15 years in Canada about abuse, bullying, harassment, as well as neglect and the legal and moral obligations that coaches have.

“Girls drop out of sport at a rate of 7-to-1 from boys. So how do we keep them engaged?” he pondered.

“We’ve gained significant ground. There are a lot of organizations and grassroots sports organizations doing a lot in this area. I don’t think you can ever be done with trying to be better in regards to these types of issues, but there has been a lot done.”

Kennedy says addressing mental health can go a long way to keeping all kids involved in sport.

“We know some of the best medicine for that is sport and exercise, and to feel like they belong.”