Developing leadership behaviours in athletes
Project summary This project developed, implemented, and evaluated the effect of a season-long athlete leadership development program. The participants included 66 female varsity athletes who participated in four leadership workshops throughout their competitive sport season, approximately one hour in duration. All of the participants completed inventories measuring leadership behaviours, cohesion, communication, and peer-motivational climate. Overall,…
Minorities in historical narratives: The case of Black Canadian women in sport
Project summary This research explored sporting practices of Southern Ontario Black women between the 1920s and the 1940s. It is aimed at developing a socio-cultural history of sport that include narratives from marginalized groups. In Canada, the focus on Black masculine narratives conflates race and racism in sport with Black men, marginalizing other people of…
Spotlighting women in sport: Research and practice
The Government of Canada has committed to reaching gender equity in sport (at all levels) by 2035. Right now, we have a long way to go. Over 90% of Canadian sport media coverage is focused solely on men’s sport (Pegoraro and Moore, 2022). Women and girls have lower sport participation rates and higher dropout rates…
The importance of the pelvic floor in returning to physical activity after childbirth
After childbirth, mothers have numerous concerns about their postpartum body and its capacity for returning to physical activity. One of the worries is whether physical activity may negatively affect the pelvic floor after pregnancy and delivery. The pelvic floor is a crucial group of muscles that helps maintain bladder and bowel control, support internal organs,…
Creating sport environments that support mental health for girls and women
This blog post provides a recap of the fourth webinar in the 4-part mini-series Engaging Girls and Women in Sport. SIRC and Canadian Women & Sport co-hosted the mini-series, which you can access or learn more about by visiting our SIRC Experts Webinar page. Every year, 1 in 5 people in Canada will personally experience a mental…
Mentoring Black women coaches: Developing confidence through relationships and learning
Photo credit: Conestoga College Condors Athletics Highlights Some coaches are the “only” in their organization: the only woman, only racialized person or only racialized woman. Being the “only” relates to feelings of otherness and isolation, threatening coaches’ confidence. Social support and environmental comfort can build coach confidence. Racism and sexism in sport in Canada can…
Shaping inclusive sport policy and programs
Highlights Over the past few years, the racism and discrimination brought to light throughout society and within the sport sector have forced a necessary reflection on policies and practices. There’s a renewed urgency for sport stakeholders to adopt new policies and programs to bring about cultural change that can ensure the future of sport includes…
Women’s hockey under the radar: What’s driving participation?
It has been almost a quarter of a century since women’s ice hockey debuted at the Olympic Games in Nagano, Japan. Despite a heartbreaking loss for Team Canada in the final of the first Olympic women’s hockey competition, it was a big step forward for women’s hockey on the international stage. Since then, Canada has…
Getting girls back in the game: A conversation with experts and community leaders
This blog recaps the first webinar in the 4‑part mini-series Engaging Girls and Women in Sport. SIRC and Canadian Women & Sport co-hosted the mini-series, which you can access or learn more about by visiting our SIRC Expert Webinars page. — The COVID‑19 pandemic continues to disrupt the sport in Canada and around the world….
Mom’s Got Game! Stories of world-class athletes and gold-medal moms
Fourteen months ahead of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games, curler Jennifer Jones had a nasty accident, tearing a major ligament, the ACL in her knee. She was pregnant with her first child and hoping to represent Canada at the Olympics. “Because I was pregnant, a lot of people never thought that I would be able to…