viaSport – viaSport announces new priorities for girls and women in sport

Vancouver, BC – The #LevelTheField Gender Equity campaign wrapped up yesterday, March 31, at the Game On! Women in Sport event at Chilliwack Museum and Archives. The campaign was the first phase of #LevelTheField — a province-wide movement led by viaSport to create a more inclusive sport culture in BC.

Launched in November of 2015, #LevelTheField has engaged Olympians, Paralympians, coaches, officials, administrators, executives, volunteers, and other sport leaders in a pledge to level the field for girls and women in sport. This includes 10 influential female sport leaders who joined the campaign as ambassadors to share their personal stories, achievements, and adversities as athletes, coaches, and executives.

CAMPAIGN STATISTICS: 

• More than 512,000 #LevelTheField impressions on Twitter
• More than 30,000 views of the #LevelTheField Gender Equity video
• More than 90 people from 19 BC communities participated in community workshops to date

“We are proud to see British Columbia’s sport sector engaging in a movement to help build a stronger, more equitable sport system across the province,” says Peter Fassbender, Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development. “We hope this movement will continue to inspire others to help BC become a provincial leader in this area.”

Together with Regional Alliance Partners—PacificSport Interior BC, PacificSport Columbia Basin, PacificSport Northern BC, the Pacific Institute for Sport Excellence (PISE), and Whistler Sport Legacies—viaSport hosted five #LevelTheField Inspiring Change workshops in five regions across the province. Due to additional interest, a sixth workshop has been scheduled at the Richmond Olympic Oval for April 19. One applicant from each workshop will be allocated a $1,000 grant to implement a program or initiative that supports gender equity in their region.

 “The #LevelTheField Gender Equity campaign is only the first step in raising awareness and educating BC on the obstacles preventing more girls and women from participating in sport and physical activity,” says Sheila Bouman, viaSport CEO. “viaSport’s goal is to see 50 per cent female representation across all levels of sport in BC by the year 2020, and we will continue to work with our sport partners to achieve this measurable difference.”

Stay tuned for the next inclusion phase at www.viasport.ca/levelthefield. Follow viaSport @viaSportBC on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to stay connected. 
  

Quick Links: 

• #LEVELTHEFIELD campaign page
• Gender equity campaign page
• #LEVELTHEFIELD Inspiring Change Workshops
• #LEVELTHEFIELD gender equity backgrounder and stats
• #LEVELTHEFIELD Ambassadors
• #LEVELTHEFIELD Game On! Women in Sport Event

About viaSport British Columbia:
viaSport British Columbia is a not-for-profit organization created by the Provincial Government in 2011 as a legacy of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Our mandate is to increase awareness, opportunity and participation in sport across the province – at every stage of life and in every community. By leading the province’s sport sector in building a stronger, more effective system, we will bring more families to the field of play, more fans into the stands, more athletes to the podium, and more sports events to the province. Learn more at viasport.ca

Media Contact:
Michelle Tice
Director, Communications & Engagement, viaSport
778.655.1774
michellet@viasport.ca