Ripping the Rs out of revolution

Ripping the Rs out of revolution
Edited by Chrissie Wellington, 4 x Ironman Triathlon World Champion

Introduction by Baz Moffat, CEO @ The Well HQ

I met Chrissie a few months ago and, in sport, we share some experiences. We both started late, both found success, both saw strange and wonderful places …

But more than a shared history we share a vision of the future and how sport can change lives if only its systems can do more and be more.

I invited Chrissie to be our first outside editor and I’m thrilled she said yes.

Limited gains

Professional sport, on the face of it, can be a selfish, self-indulgent pursuit. Most elite sportspeople, me included, are motivated by the challenge; the opportunity to test ourselves, the fulfilment of potential, the chance at a medal …

As much as we might be motivated by these me goals, sport can also provide people with an incredible voice, platform and an opportunity to inspire change. It’s not necessarily the responsibility of a pro athlete, past or present, to seize this opportunity, but it can make a selfish pursuit about so much more.

Many athletes use their positions to advocate for causes and to spearhead or support positive change. This is fantastic, it should be encouraged and applauded. My mission is to advocate for the power and potential of physical activity for all, not just the few, including those women and girls still underserved at all levels of the current system.

But am I an inspiration? I don’t know if it’s as cause and effect as that …

Professional athletes can enthuse and inspire, but inspiration is a mere moment before life throws up resistance. There are so many barriers at individual and societal levels: a lack of coaches and support staff; fear of not belonging; concern over what people think, self-doubt about not being fit enough. Then there’s cost, access, time plus cultural norms that say sport isn’t cool or girls don’t play.

A teen girl watching the incredible Dame Laura Kenny at the Olympics might fancy track cycling, but when faced with resistance the light quickly fades. The inspiration is lost and the stats – which tell a damning story of inequality – stay where they are.

The (grass)roots of the problem

As we look to a super Summer of Sport, big wins for home nation athletes and teams will put women’s sport (I dislike that term isn’t it just sport?) in the shop window.

So let’s say there’s a moment. Let’s say the moment has momentum. Let’s say people and whole communities are inspired. Let’s say people of all ages and from all kinds of backgrounds want to get in on the action. What then?

Sport in this country relies on incredible clubs, charities and volunteers. They do phenomenal work, week in and week out, but they’re operating within a failing system. A system which lacks coherence, organisation, leadership, coordination, infrastructure, resources and sustained investment.

It feels incongruous versus the flood of sponsorship money flowing into the men’s side of many elite sports. Sure, on the women’s side the trickle in some sports is increasing but it still pales into insignificance and said monies aren’t sufficiently reaching the system so that athlete-led inspiration can turn the participation tide.

So what happens after the moment of inspiration? Girls gradually fall out of creaky systems. The precious few who remain, unless they’ve decent private money behind them, chase a dream on minimal resources supported by people paid far less (if at all) than those on the men’s side.

Creating a real revolution

The women’s sport revolution? Visibility, status, viewership, ad dollars, sponsors, professionalism – no doubt change is afoot in some sports and sectors.

But it’s piecemeal and doesn’t go far enough.

Some athletes are using their platform to influence and inspire, but inspiration and actually changing participation are two very different things. The link from professional glory to grassroots participation is more complex than simple cause and effect, and if we want more girls to step up and stay in sport over their lives then we can’t kid ourselves that inspiration alone is enough. It’s not.

Inspiration might help the girl who thinks maybe, just maybe, this space is for me too … but still she needs the means.

Inspiration might encourage a parent to offer a new opportunity to their daughter … but what if there are no swimming pools or safe places to cycle, or there are worries about how to play when she’s on her period?

Inspiration might light the fire in someone to train as a coach … but passion alone won’t pay pitch hire.

So let’s raise the visibility of women playing and doing sport. Let’s celebrate progress on and off the pitch. Let’s applaud the brands and companies that are investing. Let’s appreciate organisations big and small that are working tirelessly to break barriers …

But let’s do this whilst building stronger foundations – institutionally, culturally, commercially and socially. Let’s do this while ensuring that influence and inspiration can have a lasting, tangible impact for everyone and not just a few.

That’s the wholesale, structural revolution that we all need to see.