Research Officer presents finding on Women and Sport Movement at world conference
Women and Sport Research Officer Jordan Matthews is today presenting findings from his PhD at the International Working Group for Women and Sport (IWG) sixth World Conference on Women and Sport in Helsinki.
Using interviews conducted with prominent women and sport personnel, as well as extensive data collection from the Anita White Foundation (AWF) International Women and Sport Movement Archive, Jordan will outline the origins, development and outcomes of a social movement for women and sport.
Jordan (right) said: “Conferences such as this allow for rare opportunities to share global knowledge in regard to a range of women and sport issues. My work focuses on how different groups and organisations around the world have become a collective in order to advance women in sport and therefore the Conference provides not only a fantastic opportunity to present my research, but to gain new contacts and understanding.”
Earlier in the conference Jordan and Dr Elizabeth Pike, Reader in Sociology of Sport and Exercise and Chair of the Anita White Foundation, presented at the keynote session outlining the results of a major research project that has contributed to the IWG 2014 Progress Report.
The project has documented the issues women have encountered in sport globally over the last twenty years. One major contemporary issue is women in sport’s leadership, and the University of Chichester is continuing its proactive role in the field of women and sport by working alongside Females Achieving Brilliance (below) and the Anita White Foundation to launch the Women’s Sport Leadership Academy at the end of this month.
The Women’s Sport Leadership Academy is designed to develop tomorrow’s leaders of sport, and the University of Chichester, Females Achieving Brilliance, and the Anita White Foundation will be bringing together 40 women representing international and national sport federations and Olympic Committees from every continent for a residential programme of leadership development.
From June onwards WSLA will evolve into an on-going network that will run seminars and conferences as well as the core leadership development programme. At this point we will be looking to make the practical connection between women who play or played sport and now work in industry, and sport organisations.
