Canoeing Ireland has been selected by the International Canoe Federation to host the inaugural Women in Paddlesports Symposium in September 2023.
The ICF Women Symposium invites females in paddlesports at all levels to be part of the conversation on how to create a more equitable future for the sport.
The two-day event will bring together voices from around the world with a shared goal to set out a strategy to increase opportunities for women to progress to leadership positions both on and off the water.
Not only will the conference provide a platform to engage with women from around the globe on the range of issues facing women on their pathway through the sport, but it also promises an opportunity to join an inspiring community of female leaders in paddlesports with a series of targeted workshops and interactive discussions.
The awarding of this conference to Canoeing Ireland comes off the back of some outstanding work in the area of women in sport, with equality at the forefront of everything the organization does.
“Canoeing Ireland has developed a world-class Women in Sport programme, “Bridge the Gap” managed by our Women in Sport Lead, Emer Carton, and supported by Sport Ireland,” said Moira Aston, Canoeing Ireland CEO.
“This programme has transformed the landscape of opportunity and experience for female paddlers in Ireland. We are very proud of what has been achieved and are pleased to be offered the opportunity to share our learnings with the international community of female paddlers.”
“I’m really looking forward to two days of discussions in Dublin, and hearing the ideas of women in our sport on how we can open up pathways to the top,” added ICF vice-president, Cecilia Farias.
“We always look at this issue mostly from the perspective of men, so I will be very interested to hear the perspective of women.”
“From our experience in Canoeing Ireland, we know that women benefit from a strong network, opportunities to challenge and support each other and to discuss openly what causes them to hold back from taking on leadership and coaching roles,” added Lynda Byron, President of Canoeing Ireland.
“This symposium offers these opportunities both to discuss and create a future where women have an equal say in our sport.”
The event will take place on September 26th and 27th.
Sport for Business Perspective:
“We have seen through our work on the Olympic Federation of Ireland Gender Equality Commission the high regard that Irish sport is held in with regard to creating visibility and opportunity around Women in Sport. This is another great opportunity to build our national reputation and to raise the profile of canoeing here on a world stage.”
