May 2013
Growing Your Game for Girls
Sport Talks are free monthly events for State Sporting Organisation staff, run by Sport and Recreation (NSW).
This month's talk 'Growing Your Game for Girl's will be held on Thursday, 30th May at the Ian Thorpe Theatrette, NSWIS Building.
To find out more please click here
Is Women Playing in Men's Leagues a step forward?
This article, by Sam Squiers discusses 22 year old American basketball sensation Brittney Griner and the larger debate about whether adding females to male competitions can be beneficial or detrimental to women's sports
It appeared on The Daily Life website on 3 May, 2013
To read the article please click here
IAPESGW Conference - AWRA Charter
AWRA president Janice Crosswhite recently gave a presentation at the IAPESGW Conference in Havana Cuba where she detailed the AWRA Charter and discussed our vision.
To view her presentation please click here
Sport for Development Programs for Girls and Women: A Global Assessment
Using a framework of sport for development (SFD) theory and program objectives set forth by the UN, this study identified trends in sport for SFD programs for girls and women.
The number of SFD programs, objectives, and intended impacts identified in this study suggests that the abundance of policies supporting sport and women's development is a step forward in the quest for global gender equity and the achievement of various Millennium Development Goals.
To find out more please click here
April 2013
Study Advises New Ways to Attract Club Members
'Australia's sporting clubs have the potential to recruit an additional 3.8 million members if they consider new ways of delivering sport to Australians who want to get involved in club-based sport according to a new report released today.'
This was one of the findings of a new report, 'Market Segmentation for Sport Participation' which identifies the key motivators, needs and barriers that underpin Australians' decisions to participate in sport.
To find out more about this please click here
AWRA now hiring due to Federal funding boost
Women and sport will receive a boost after the Australian Womensport & Recreation Association (AWRA) secured funding from the Gillard Government to hire an Executive Officer (EO).
The new EO will work with AWRA's board to help build a nation of healthier and stronger women by giving them greater access to sport, physical activity and recreational opportunities. Funding for the part-time EO will be for an initial 12 months and is due to funding from the Gillard Government.
To find out more about this please click here
Adelante Muchachas - Moving Together for a Better World
The 17th World Congress of the International Association of Physical Education and Sport for Girls and Women (IAPESGW) was held from 10th - 13 April 2013 in Havana Cuba, and was attended by our President Janice Crosswhite.
To view a report of the congress please click here
March 2013
A Charter for all Active Women
AWRA is proud to unveil 'A Charter for all Active Women'. It details how Australian Womensport and Recreation Australia (AWRA) urgently advocates for:
1. Providing more opportunities for female participation at all levels of sport and active recreation
2. Increasing female participation in leadership roles.
3. Addressing the barriers girls and women face in sport and physical activity.
4. Increasing media coverage of the activities and achievements of female athletes.
To view the Charter please click here.
Shout out to Australian women: Do one thing today that will make you healthier and happier.
On International Women's Day, AWRA, Australia's peak women's sport advocacy body urges women around the nation to do one thing today that will make them a little bit healthier and happier.
"We all have busy lives juggling family, friends and work in and outside the home, so finding time for ourselves is always hard," AWRA president Janice Crosswhite said.
"But if we all do just one thing that benefits our health and happiness, we can help ourselves. And it will have a positive ripple effect on our families, our social groups and our communities."
To view AWRA's Media Release on this please click here
Reminder - The Casula Powerhouse Art Centre's Women in Sport Forum
AWRA is proud to bring you 'Women In Sport', an exhibition, forum and school's engagement program which observes and analyses women and sport through an arts and cultural lens.
The Women in Sport Forum is to be held on 15-16 March and 'is a two-day event complementing Onside, a contemporary arts exhibition delving into the world of women's sport and coming up with surprising images and topics for conversation. Onside aims to engage, inform, challenge, stimulate, reflect, inspire and ultimately push the boundaries of people's thoughts, ideas, beliefs and perceptions about women in sports in Australia.'
This is a FREE event.
To view the flyer for the Women in Sport Forum please click here
To find out more about 'Women in Sport' at The Casula Powerhouse Art Centre please click here
Radio interviews with AWRA Ambassador Lauren Jackson
AWRA Ambassador Lauren Jackson has recently conducted some radio interviews, includin speaking with Karen Tighe on ABC Grandstand, and Sports Talk on Radio Adelaide.
You can listen to these below:
Sports Talk - Radio Adelaide Interview
February 2013
Ambassador Lauren Jackson encourages women and girls to get off the couch, and help make a difference
The Australian Womensport and Recreation Association today announced Australia's most successful and decorated basketball player Lauren Jackson has accepted the role as Ambassador for the peak national advocacy body for women's sport.
Jackson said she was delighted to take on the role as an AWRA Ambassador, saying she looked forward to promoting AWRA's vision of a strong and healthy Australia by encouraging more women and girls to participate in sport, physical activity and recreation.
Please click here to view the media release
https://twitter.com/laurenej15
Teaching girls to prioritise function over form for better body image
This article by Bree Abbott, of Murdoch University, first appeared on theconversation.edu.au on 15 February 2013. It discusses how "we need to shift the focus from appearance to function and teach girls to value more than just looks."
Please click here to view the article
January 2013
AWRA Blog
AWRA now has a blog - please click here to view
AWRA Leadership Workshop - 24 March
AWRA is hosting a leadership workshop in Diamond Creek, Melbourne, VIC on Sunday 24 March. The expert presenter is Henny Oldenhove. Henny has much experience in women's sport as a consultant, public servant (with the Australian Sports Commission and the ACT Government), planner, facilitator and a volunteer at local and national level.
For more information please click here
The Casula Powerhouse Art Centre's Women in Sport Progam
AWRA is proud to bring you 'Women In Sport', an exhibition, forum and school's engagement program which observes and analyses women and sport through an arts and cultural lens.
To find out more about 'Women in Sport' please click here
Count Us In - Developing Physical Activity Programs for Women
This guideline has been developed on findings from a three year research project titled 'Count Us In: Developing Physical Activity Programs for Women'. The guidelines are targeted for program providers in private, community and leisure organisations, located in metropolitan and regional areas throughout Victoria.
To find out more, and view the guidline, please click here
Establishing a successful physical activity program to recruit and retain women
This article, written by Clare Hanlon, Tony Morris, Susan Nabbs, appeared in the Sport Management Review and discusses how to recruit and retain women in physical activity.
To view the article, please click here
Nicole Cooke's retirement statement in full
On 14 January Olympic Gold Medallist, and cyclist, Nicole Cooke retired from the sport. In her retirement statement she takes aim at many issues cycling faces including doping and gender inequality.
To read her statement in full please click here
December 2012
AWRA needs an EO
The Australian Womensport and Recreation Association (AWRA) has operated on a shoestring budget with a voluntary board since our inception in 2005. In order to create a stronger, healthier Australian culture through the active participation of women and girls in sport, physical activity and active recreation we need an Executive Officer.
Please click here to find out more
Sport & The Law - London, a watershed for women's participation in the Olympics?
This article discusses how "Arguably, the London Games achieved more in promoting and raising awareness of fundamental human rights and principles than any modern Olympics"
It was written by AWRA President Janice Crosswhite and AWRA Honorary Solicitor Tim Fuller first appeared in the Alternative Law Journal 37(4).
To read the article, please click here
Women sporting stars honoured, but deserve more
London Olympic sprint cycle champion Anna Meares added another prestigious award to her impressive collection last night when she won the 2012 Sports Woman of the Year at the Women's Health magazine's second annual I Support Women In Sport black-tie event in Sydney.
To find out more, and view a full list of winners, please see our attached media release below.
Please click here to view the release
November 2012
AWRA 2012 President's Report
AWRA's Annual Report for 2012 by President Janice Crosswhite
AWRA 2012 AGM Teleconference Details
Please find below the details for the AWRA Teleconference on next Monday 19th November 2012 at 4.30pm (WST).
The number you will need to ring is (08) 9492 9960 and the Booking ID is 1112#
You can find the proposed agenda here
IAPESGW's 17th World Congress, April 2013
The 17th IAPESGW World Congress is to be held in Havana, Cuba April 10th - 13th 2013.
For more information, please click here
Australian Government response to the Senate Environment, Communications, Information Technology and the Arts References Committee report: About Time! Women in Sport and Recreation in Australia
The Australian Government has undertaken significant work in addressing the issues raised in the Senate Environment, Communications, Information Technology and the Arts References Committee report - About time! Women in sport and recreation in Australia. This response to the About Time Report outlines action taken by the Australian Government, its current priorities and future agenda in this area.
For view this response, please click here
October 2012
What next for cycling? Gender diversity will help return integrity to sport
Anti-doping consultant Catherine Ordway wrote for www.womensagenda.com on 23 October 2012 about the fallout from the Lance Armstrong doping scandal and questions 'Where to now for the Sport?'
To read the article please click here
"Sport in Transition" paper supports the rights of transgender and intersex athletes
The Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) has released a report entitled, "Sport in Transition: Making Sport in Canada More Responsible for Gender Inclusivity." The document concludes that, because variations in sex development exist, individuals should have the right to compete without question in the gender they feel they are or have always identified with, and emphasizes that this right to gender self-identification carries both the privilege of inclusion and the responsibility for fair play.
To find out more please click here
Real success drives women's coverage
Richard Hinds writes about how the media and society is often 'accused of treating women, and women's sport, with less regard than their male counterparts', and claims that 'the media could do more to prominently display the achievements of women athletes. But so, too, could those paid to administer women's sport manage their athletes better'. The article first appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald on 11 October, 2012.
To read this article, please click here
Bonita Mersiades calls for more women in sport leadership roles
This article by Ray Gatt appeared in the Australian on 9 October, 2012, and discusses how 'one of Australia's most respected sporting administrators says federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott is a "pussycat" compared with the men who run world football.' and how she believes that 'governments need to ensure qualified women have a bigger role to play at the top end of sports administration.'
To read this article, please click here
September 2012
Nominations for AWRA Board Members
Please find the form attached for nominations for AWRA Board Members. All applications are to be received by 5pm on 26 October, 2012.
The nominations will be considered at the AWRA AGM on 19 November, 2012.
Futher details regarding the AGM, including the agenda, and minutes, will be on our site in the near future.
To find out more please click here
AWRA signs the Brighton Declaration
The Brighton Declaration is addressed to all governments, public authorities, organizations, businesses, educational and research establishments, women's organizations and individuals responsible for, or who directly or indirectly influence, the conduct, development or promotion of sport or who are in any way involved in the employment, education, management, training, development or care of women in sport.
This declaration is meant to complement all sporting, local, national and international charters, laws, codes, rules and regulations relating to women or sport.
To find out more please click here
August 2012
Sex, muscles, basketball: How do you sell an athletic woman?
Four decades since Title IX, organizations are still figuring out how to market female athletes, especially those who might not conform to traditional notions of femininity, writes Shelley DuBois for CNN online on 15 August, 2012.
To read this article, please click here
Research Says: Women In Groups Make Smarter Groups!
This study by the Harvard Business Review finds that the IQ of individuals in a group is not as important as how gender-diverse it is and that bringing women into the group causes the intelligence to rise.
To read this article, please click here
July 2012
Gender inequality of Olympic proportions
Amy Bainbridge writes about how women were not allowed to compete in the first ever Olympics back in 1896 in this article. It appeared on ABC's The Drum website on 26 July, 2012
To read this article, please click here
Ladies first: Why 2012 is the Women's Games
This article by Emily Dugan appeared in The Independent on 8th July 2012. It details how London 2012 will be the first Olympics to which every nation sends a female competitor and which women are not barred from any sport
To read this article, please click here
Catherine Ordway
Catherin Ordway is an international expert in the field of sports law and anti-doping. She is also an Independent Director of Canoeing Australia.
To read more on Catherine, please click here
Karrie ready for eighth Open
This article by Peter Stone, which appeared in The Age of 5 July, 2012, asks why Karrie Webb's extremely successful career hasn't had a greater influence on Golf amongst females in our country.
To read this article, please click here
June 2012
Female Leaders in Australian Sport
"Females may represent 50 per cent of Australia's population, but a report this week from Women on Boards found that Australia's national sport organisation boards have a long way to go to reach gender balance in the boardroom."
This article by Dr Emma Sherry from La Trobe University deals with the above issue, providing facts and figures to support this claim.
To read the article, please click here
Channel Nine grabs gold in the testosterone Olympics
Peter Bannan writes, in this article which first appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald on 15th June, 2012, about the heavy bias of Channel Nine's Olympic presenting team towards males, and provides several suitable alternatives.
To read this article, please click here
Olympics' Coverage Still Shortchanges Female Athletes
This article by Jane Schonberger appears in the On The Issues Magazine for Spring 2012 discusses the issues with the lack of gender equality in Olympic Games Coverage
To read this article, please click here
May 2012
Lingerie Football League good or evil ... or somewhere in between - by Narelle Gosstray
Last year when it was announced that a Lingerie Football League was coming to Australia, the Board of the Australian Womensport and Recreation Association (AWRA) gave the issue some serious thought and presented our position on it.
To be honest we hoped that it would be a fly by night affair, and although there is a lot of promotion surrounding the impending tour to Australia, we still think and hope that it will run its natural course and fade out as quickly as it seems to have arrived. Of course there will be debate about the league. The promoters want that. By their calculations the more we talk about it, the more tickets they will sell. So one of the considerations by AWRA was, do we stay quiet on this, or do we announce our position?
To read more on this, please click here
Good news and then the not so good news in Women's sport
The good news is that a women's eight (W8) will be given the opportunity to compete in the London Olympics.
The not so good news however, is that this week The Australian newspaper sport staff have identified the top 50 most influential people in sport and there is only three women on the list and a female horse!
To read more on this, please click here
Kate Caithness
Kate Caithness became the first female president of a winter sports federation in 2010, and was recently re-elected for a new two-year term at the World Curling Federation.
Kate has offered her advice to women who are looking for a career in sport.
To read more on this, please click here
April 2012
Australian Womensport and Recreation Association's Submission to the Inquiry into the Broadcasting Services Amendment (Anti-siphoning) Bill 2012
The Australian Womensport and Recreation Association (AWRA) is the peak advocacy body for women's sport and recreation in Australia. Our Vision Statement is:
"To build a strong and healthy Australian culture through increasing the active participation of women and girls in sport, physical activity and recreation."
AWRA is pleased to make this brief submission to the Inquiry.
Please click here to view our submission
March 2012
National Breast Cancer Foundation - Sports Funding
The National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF) is the only community-funded national organisation in Australia raising money for research into the prevention and cure of breast cancer. One of their biggest areas of focus for this year is sports fundraising. They aim to engage and inspire the sports and leisure community in Australia to raise money for breast cancer research through fun and exciting sporting initiatives.
To find out more please click here
No Women Allowed
This article was written by Matthew Syed and appeared in The Australian on 17 March, 2012. It discusses how "Saudi Arabia, a nation that will be welcomed to London 2012 in July, has never allowed a woman to compete under its flag at the Olympic Games and does not even allow girls to take part in PE at state schools."
To find out more and view the article, please click here
Statement on Lingerie Football League
The Board of the Australian Womensport and Recreation League (AWRA) put out a media release on the Lingerie Football League on 17 September 2011.
This media release has been incorrectly quoted in some media outlets, such as The Sunday Mail (article titled Game Face by Leanne Edmistone) on Sunday 4 March 2012.
AWRA is extremely disappointed that the intent of our media release and comments has been lost, and it was not our intent to publicly criticise netball, a sport with which we have close and positive relationships.
To view AWRA's Media Release regarding this issue please click here
Bowls Australia vacancy - Elected Director
Recently the Bowls Australia board accepted the resignation of elected director Roz Davey at their last meeting.
This has led to a casual vacancy becoming available as an elected director until the next annual general meeting, which is scheduled for October this year.
To find out more about this opportunity please click here
Lundy brings a fresh face to sports landscape
The Australian Womensport and Recreation Association (AWRA) congratulates Senator Kate Lundy on her appointment as the new Federal Sports Minister.
AWRA have issued a press release supporting this appointment.
To view the release please click here
February 2012
No Australian Women's 8 for the London 2012 Olympics
The Australian Womensport and Recreation Association (AWRA) is extremely disappointed that Australia's women's eight (W8) rowers will not be given the opportunity to compete in the London Olympics.
According to Rowing Australia there are not the required number of women available, of the right standard, to fill a boat and that the best use of our talent and resources is to enter other boats. They will however enter a men's eight as the men have reached the required performance standards.... ...
AWRA have issued a press release regarding this situation.
To view the release please click here
Sportzfan Radio - 19 February 2012
AWRA President Janice Crosswhite appeared on the Sportzfan radio show on 19 February 2012. The show discusses the weekend's papers, raises the matters of women seen as lesser versions, women not putting themselves forward, and the impact of social media and involvement of women in AFL amongst other issues. It also features interviews with Simone Wearne and Nicole Chvastek.
To listen to the podcast please click here
Cycle Cambodia - June 2012
A group of Victorians will head to Cambodia in June to empower Cambodian women with disability on the 'CyclePower' charity challenge. Not your usual humanitarian trip, participants will cycle 350kms across Cambodia on an eight day journey with Disability Sport & Recreation.
Cambodian women with disability live on the lowest rung of society, with limited opportunities and infrastructure to serve their basic needs of health and fitness. CyclePower will establish a Women's Wheelchair Basketball Program, using sport as a tool for women's empowerment.
There are a few places still available on this unique cycling adventure to help create a level playing field for women with disability. If you're passionate about helping women achieve their rights, sport or experiencing new cultures, contact Karla for more information. karla@dsr.org.au (03)9473 0100.
To find out more please click here
Few Women On Australia Day Honours List - Call to Action!
This years Australia day honours list was once again dominated by males. As Carol Schwartz writes in The Age on 8th February, 2012, "As in previous years, fewer than a third of the names on the Australia Day honours list are women. As in previous years, women are given more awards in the lowest grades than in the higher."
This is a call to action to download the application form here and nominate female athletes (past and present), coaches, officials, administrators and volunteers for Australian Honours. Let's see if we can turn around this trend and have a more equal representation for females in next years awards.
To view Carol's article please click here
To download the application form please click here
World leader Tseng sets sights on more power
This article written by Martin Blake appeared in The Sydney Morning Herald on 8 February, 2012. Martin discusses how despite being the world number 1 female golfer and having a stellar 2011 in which she won 12 titles, Yani Tseng is still struggling for recognition in the world of golf.
To find out more and view the article, please click here
Elmir eyeing London in women's boxing
This article written by David Beniuk appeared in The Sydney Morning Herald on 3 February, 20120. It interviews Australian Olympic boxing hopeful Bianca Elimer, who also works as an advisor for a Greens Politician, and discusses the problems with the different weight divisions in Olympic Womens Boxing and how the large difference between weight divisions means that many competitors have been shedding unhealthy amounts of weight to fit into certain classes.
To find out more and view the article, please click here
January 2012
Sport makes fist of Gender Split
This article written by John Ross appeared in The Australian on 5 January, 2012. It discusses how 'Sportsmen are more prone to alcohol-fuelled violence, both as perpetrators and victims, than non-sportsmen. But female athletes are both safer and more civilised than less active women, an Australian-first study suggests'
To find out more and view the article, please click here
Sport's gender divide: officials must start a gut-busting run
This article by Kimberley Crowe discusses how 'Women's sport is not an inferior product, and better leadership would improve its profile.'
To find out more and view the article, please click here
Woman rider lets fly at top official
Chloe Hosking, one of Australia's top women cyclists, used the occasion of her season-opening win to brand the head of the sports governing body ''a dick''.
To find out more and view the article, please click here