World Athletics leads charge for gender equality with new initiatives

Sebastian Coe, the President of World Athletics, has expressed his pride in the organization's commitment to gender equity in sports.

World Athletics president Sebastian Coe (Image Credits - World Athletics)
By Abhiruchi Rout | Mar 8, 2023 | 3 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

World Athletics, the international governing body for athletics, announced a number of initiatives on International Women’s Day to increase gender equity in the sport. The most significant step is the pledge to have 40% female representation in its Council, which is the decision-making body. The organization aims to increase the number of women on the Council from eight members currently to a minimum of 10 members, including at least one female Vice President, at the Council elections in August 2023. The World Athletics also plans to build a pipeline to increase female representation across its four commissions to 50% for the 2023-2027 term.

In addition to the Council’s gender representation, World Athletics plans to increase the number of female coaches at the World Championships to at least 20% by the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 2025. The organization will encourage Member Federations to send more female coaches and provide the learning pathway in countries where women are underrepresented at the coaching level. World Athletics also committed itself to the extension of its Ukraine Solidarity Fund to enable Ukrainian athletes, majority of them female, to participate in World Athletics Championships and other events this year. The fund supports athletes who have been affected by the conflict in Ukraine and lack the resources to participate in athletics.

Moreover, the organization aims to align itself with the UN Women #DigitALL campaign and harness the power of digital technology to develop more online courses and exams. It will also share stories of inspirational women in its Women in Athletics section by highlighting one story every day from March 8, 2023, until March 7, 2024, as a source of inspiration for girls and women. Additionally, it also plans to organize 10 Gender Leadership courses and activities to be carried out by the Area Development centers, work more closely with one-day meetings and road events to ensure equal opportunities of athletes in events and prize money.

Read more: World Athletics extends financial support to athletes from Ukraine

What the World Athletics President Had to Say

Sebastian Coe, the President of World Athletics, has expressed his pride in the organization’s commitment to gender equity in sports. He believes that it is not enough to provide equal opportunities; true equity can only be achieved by offering female athletes, administrators, and officials the tools and environment they need to pursue careers at all levels of athletics. This can be achieved through setting quotas for female representation on World Athletics’ Council and providing flexible learning and development opportunities that better suit women’s commitments.

According to research conducted by Nielsen, 74% of World Athletics‘ fans believe that the organization is genuinely committed to championing equality. Coe sees this as an important achievement for the organization and a demonstration of its leadership in promoting gender equity initiatives. However, he recognizes that achieving true equity requires the active participation of all stakeholders in the sport, including Member Federations, Local Organizing Committees, media, and photographers who cover the events. Coe invites everyone in the sport to take an active role in promoting gender equity and standing up for it whenever they see the need for improvement. He believes that World Athletics can set an example for other International Federations to follow and that achieving gender equity will benefit not only the sport of athletics but every aspect of life.

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