On 16 January, 28 coaches graduated from cohort 4 of the Ladies in Sport Excessive-Efficiency (WISH) coaching programme, bringing the overall to 120 feminine coaches from 22 sports activities disciplines – together with hockey – who haven’t accomplished the programme. Backed by Olympic Solidarity funding, this initiative goals to deal with the underrepresentation of ladies in elite teaching.
Among the many graduates have been Sofie Gierts and Pleasure Jouret, each former Purple Panthers (Belgium’s nationwide hockey group), who benefited from one-on-one management mentoring in addition to ongoing assist from a sport-specific mentor.
“The commencement was an emotional and galvanizing milestone, marking each an finish and a brand new starting. It was a second to replicate on the unimaginable journey we’ve all been on, celebrating the expansion, achievements, and bonds cast by means of the programme,” mentioned Pleasure Jouret.
Reflecting on key takeaways, Pleasure highlighted the facility of neighborhood:
“Being surrounded by like-minded, formidable ladies from around the globe, all pushing boundaries in high-performance teaching, was actually motivating. The ceremony additionally strengthened the significance of mentorship and collaboration in reaching our objectives. Total, the WISH programme has been a transformative expertise. It has given me not simply technical abilities but in addition the arrogance and assist community to push ahead in a male-dominated discipline. The ‘closure’ was much less about an ending and extra about stepping boldly into the following chapter—geared up and impressed to make a distinction.”
As a former worldwide participant and an skilled high-level coach for the Worldwide, European, and Belgian Hockey Federations, Pleasure Jouret stays dedicated to accelerating gender equality in hockey. Since graduating from WISH, she has hosted the “Breaking Boundaries”, an FIH Academy Masterclass, a part of the FIH Ladies in Hockey Empowerment Undertaking, the place she shared insights and methods to assist different ladies overcome boundaries in high-performance teaching. She can be pursuing a Grasp’s thesis in Psychology on the College of Louvain-La-Neuve (Belgium), specializing in the underrepresentation of ladies in high-level teaching.
“I intention to implement cutting-edge strategies and management abilities gained by means of WISH in my very own teaching follow, serving to my athletes attain their full potential—each on and off the sphere,” she concluded.
In the meantime, Sofie Gierts is at present the pinnacle coach of a males’s First Division group in Belgium—a task that is still distinctive and, sadly, nonetheless too uncommon for ladies. Commenting on the presence of ladies in elite teaching positions, Sofie said:
“Feminine coaches are nonetheless an exception, and that should change. There’s scientific proof that various management groups perform higher. Analysis exhibits that gender variety in management contributes to higher decision-making, better security, innovation, and monetary efficiency. One of the crucial necessary pillars of this programme is strengthening the community to assist one another.”
Trying forward, Sofie emphasised the significance of main by instance:
“Gender equality is not only a matter of coverage however a follow that must be embedded in our each day work. After we collaborate, we obtain higher outcomes. I wish to proceed constructing an inclusive and galvanizing sports activities atmosphere that demonstrates how equality and prime efficiency go hand in hand.”
Undoubtedly, the WISH programme marks a major step towards gender equality in high-performance sport. Nonetheless, a lot work stays to shut the hole and enhance the variety of ladies in management roles.
“At FIH, accelerating alternatives for ladies is a key pillar of the FIH Empowerment and Engagement Technique and the just lately launched FIH Ladies in Hockey Empowerment Undertaking. We’re dedicated to uplifting and interesting feminine gamers, coaches, officers, and leaders within the sport. By this initiative, we’re additionally proud to align with the IOC’s efforts to advance gender equality in sports activities” mentioned Tayyab Ikram, FIH President.
“Hockey has demonstrated a real dedication to equality and inclusion, however this stays a steady journey. We should proceed making efforts to empower ladies in management positions. The WISH expertise has taught us that progress is only when achieved collectively—by means of networking, connecting with each other, and studying from the experiences of different ladies. It’s equally necessary to make sure that these learnings are handed on to future generations” concluded Marijke Fleuren, FIH Chair of the Gender Equality, Variety and Inclusion Committee.
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