Balance for better in sports
IN THE formative years of deciding my passions, two basic, but fundamental, moments in Jamaican sports media had a profound effect on me. As I watched the sports news nightly, sitting in front of me on prime time TV were female sports anchors Debbie Tyson or TVJ’s Dahlia Harris. Yes, women were female anchors on both our local TV stations. During that time, my love affair with basketball began, and Hannah Storm shared prime time hosting duties during the NBC’s NBA coverage.
In the role of the minister of sports, I became accustomed to seeing the Hon Portia Simpson Miller presiding over important sporting decisions. Cemented in my subconscious was that a woman held the top office in sports in Jamaica.
I remember one year, my mom told us girls to get dressed as we were going to the airport. Merlene Ottey was returning home, and she wanted us to meet our Olympic medallist. I remember the warm humility of Merlene Ottey, who looked larger than life on TV. Jamaica’s flag bearers then were the likes of Juliet Cuthbert, Merlene Ottey, and Deon Hemmings. The impression was indelible.
As I went on to The University of the West Indies (UWI), I had one sports elective. My lecturer was Dr Christine Cummings, the voice I’d become familiar with from cricket commentary and analysis. When I joined the track team, UWI’s sports director was Olympic 200m silver medallist Grace Jackson.
In short, I had many strong examples of women excelling in top positions in sports and media, both locally and overseas. Thus, pursuing my diverse passions for sports did not seem in any way unattainable.
LEVELLING THE PLAYING FIELD
Today, as we celebrate International Women’s Day, the theme is ‘Balance for Better’. The concept is simple. It’s a call for us to work towards building a gender-balanced world and levelling the playing field for both men and women. If our women and girls are empowered, it strengthens economies, households, and everyone’s quality of life.
We must protect the dream for every little girl to explore our vast world and discover her passions, whatever or wherever that may be. While she will face challenges based on dated social constructs, she must never perceive that these limits are permanent barriers to achievement.
Sport remains one of the most potent platforms for promoting gender equality and empowering women. When our girls open the newspapers weekly in Jamaica, as the only female sports columnist they will see, I ensure that for every four articles I write, I shed light on either women’s’ achievements in sports, the plight of women in sports, or the impact of our women on Jamaica and the world.
For every little boy or girl looking across Jamaica’s sporting landscape today, a woman, Hon Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange, still presides over the sports ministry. Karen Madden anchors TVJ’s Prime Time Sports. Karen is also the voice of Hitz 92FM sports radio with Trishana McGowan. In Caribbean sports living rooms, the likes of SportsMax’s Alex Jordan and ESPN’s Alexis Nunes are great examples for girls across the region.
Jamaica’s Olympian flag bearers today are Elaine Thompson and Shelly-Ann FraserPryce, who give hope to many little girls who now realise that they can become international superstars who are more than their circumstances. Alia Atkinson dominates in the pool. Our Reggae Girlz created history. Our bobsledders are women. The limitations are vanishing.
Given my current roles as vicepresident, marketing, at SportsMax, little girls have examples of women holding the highest marketing office in a Caribbean sports company. My team is an all-female marketing team. We are not alone in this male-dominated sphere. Jamaica Football Federation’s director of marketing Sophia Harris Lau holds the chief marketing role in Jamaica’s football. Carole Beckford spearheaded Cricket West Indies’ marketing. Tara Playfair is Asafa Powell’s publicist. Carole Beckford was Usain Bolt’s publicist. The next generation has examples but will undoubtedly aim higher and think bigger than us. The English Premier League appointed its first female CEO last November.
Collectively, we continue to push for more influential roles on executive boards, equal pay across men and women’s sports, balanced media coverage, and less token roles in sports media. The global best practice for getting there is through legislation, but that’s a separate article in itself. For now, we continue to pass the torch.
One love.
‘We must protect the dream for every little girl to explore our vast world and discover her passions, whatever or wherever that may be. While she will face challenges based on dated social constructs, she must never perceive that these limits are permanent barriers to achievement’.