Women in Sport in Ireland

Thank to all those who came along to the Dublin Institute of Technology campus in Grangegorman yesterday morning.

Our collection of bright minds married to real enthusiasm saw us cover a wide range of issues and subjects and this was just the beginning.

Below are a list of takeaway points to emerge from the groups that got together from sports including Rugby, Soccer, Camogie, Ladies Football, Basketball, Swimming and Hockey; from Business including Liberty Insurance, Coca Cola, Continental Tyres, PSG and AIB as well as a host of players, opinion formers and people who want to make a difference for Women’s Sport.

The group will gather again on the eve of Ireland’s Euro 2017 Qualifier against Finland at Tallaght Stadium on September 21st.

8 Initial Take Aways…

The talent, enthusiasm and influence of those who have already put their hand up is enough that we can create something which will build a broad platform for highlighting the advances in Women’s sport that are already underway.

There needs to be a tight focus on what it is that we are seeking to achieve, how success will be measured and how limited initial resources are deployed.

This is a complex area covering the competing needs to attract more participants, more supporters, more volunteers and more engagement in sport from the larger half of the population.
The message we create though needs to be very simple. A number of those messages were put forward yesterday and will be developed for the next meeting.

Storytelling and the creation of ambassadors for Women’s sport from men and women will be an important element.

There are templates we can look to from the UK and the US to inspire something in Ireland that can achieve an even greater cut through than they have in their larger and more diverse communities.

Numerous members of yesterday’s group are engaged with the Conference on Women’s Sport to be co-hosted by the Department of Justice and Equality and the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport in late October.

Leadership of Women in sport will be an important strand to what we do, including almost certainly, the creation of a Women’s Sport Network. We should not accept that Women’s Leadership is something that cannot be achieved because it has never really been there. That’s a myth that needs to be busted.

Thank you to Sinead McNulty and Caragh O’Buachalla from DIT for hosting yesterday’s session. Thank you to Aoife McDonald, Continental Tyres and the FAI for hosting the next session.
Thank you especially to those from sport and business, Government and administration, the playing fields and the back rooms who took time out to explore the possible and change the future.
And thank you to Rachel and Sinead, both sporting stars in their own worlds for giving up part of their last day of the summer holidays so that we could hear the voice of those for whom we need to make sport an easier choice to be and stay involved with.