The Gender+ Equity in Sport Research Hub was officially launched on December 1 at a virtual event with more than 400 participants from sport and research sectors. The three co-directors, Professor Gretchen Kerr of the University of Toronto's Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education, Professor Guylaine Demers of Laval University and Professor Ann Pegoraro of the University of Guelph, presented the Hub's activities and discussed how the Hub’s research will facilitate concrete changes towards greater inclusion of women and girls in all aspects of the Canadian sport.
The Hub was developed with $1.65 million in funding from the Government of Canada, whose goal is to achieve gender equity in sport by 2035 through support of applied research in sport and other initiatives.
“Sport Canada’s initiative to establish the Research Hub for Gender+ Equity in Sport presents an important and unique opportunity for researchers and practitioners to work together to advance gender+ equity in sport participation and leadership,” said Kerr. “Through the generation, curation and dissemination of knowledge the Hub will make significant contributions to achieving the goal of gender+ equity by 2035.”
The Hub is made up of a unique network of academics, sports community partners, governmental and non-governmental organizations, as well as experts in gender equity from outside sport and academia. Together, they are working to form a knowledge base and resource repository to assist research dedicated to gender+ equity in sport.
So far, the Hub’s research has shown that:
• Only 18 per cent of women between the ages of 16 and 63 are involved in sport in Canada.
• One in three girls is likely to drop out of sport between the ages of nine and 12
• Girls who self-identify as Indigenous have the lowest participation rate at 24 per cent
• Women's sport occupies only four per cent of all sports media coverage
• Only 16 per cent of coaches at the national level and 25 per cent of coaches at all levels of sport in Canada are women
• Of the Canadian coaches at the Rio Olympics, only six per cent were women.
Their research is also showing that barriers to participation in sport are increasing for girls, women and under-represented groups as a result of COVID-19.
“The early COVID-related data suggest that the trend observed in other sectors of our society is also being seen in sport, namely that women, and especially racialized women, are disproportionately affected by COVID,” said Kerr. “This is because women have had to leave the workforce in larger proportions than men for caregiving responsibilities. Women also comprise more of the lower rungs of organizations and therefore are more likely to have been furloughed or laid off.
“These findings show the importance of the Hub’s work in ensuring that gender equity remains at the forefront of a return to sport.”