Empowering teen girls in sports at the Nike x Next event
Did you know that when they reach their teens, girls are twice as likely to drop out of their sports as boys?
This statistic was the inspiration behind Nike and Next’s their Ready, Set, Girl event, all about empowering teen girls with knowledge about their body, and inspiring them to keep going in their sports, no matter the perceived barriers.
Representation of girls in sports is something I feel strongly about (after all, I spend most of my free time developing the female skate group London Longboard Girls), so I was honoured to be invited to come lead the yoga and movement part of their event.
"Cultural factors, such as gender stereotypes about femininity; gender-based expectations from parents, coaches, and teachers; and other cultural and religious norms, shape the extent to which girls participate in sport and physical activity."
Why we need more female role-models in sports
Truth be told, I have no idea what it feels like to be a teen athlete (I didn’t even remotely consider myself athletic until I was 20) but I can relate to NOT starting a sport (for me, skateboarding) for all of my childhood because I never saw any cool girls on skateboards in the media back then. So I just blindly believed, “this isn’t made for me.”
When research was done on how to motivate young girls to stay engaged in their sport, it was found that one of the most effective ways to keep girls motivated is simply to have women in coaching roles. Why? Because if young girls have female role models they can look up to, they can identify with them and see “what is possible.”
“Female coaches in girls’ sports have significant impact on girls’ participation that goes beyond skill transfer. Female coaches enhance girls’ feelings of social inclusion [and] challenges the negative cultural messages girls receive about their participation.”
By spending the day with other adult adult females in football, skateboarding and more, the goal was to show the girls that it is simply possible to carve out space for yourself in male dominated sports.
Reshaping girls’ perception of exercise & their cycle
The day opened with a yoga and movement class. I led the girls through a fun balancing flow, and restorative poses that can help relieve period cramps. The rest of the day included a bra-fitting workshop, education around periods, creative workshops, and a panel with other females in sports.
The goal of this event was to empower girls to realise their unique strengths through interactive and educational workshops, but also - and this is just as important as education - offer fresh and fun ways to make sport fun again.
Research on girls in sports suggest that while girls do look for some level of competition, having fun in their sports is a key factor to them engaged. This means we need to re-define competitiveness past simplistic masculinised ways of defining competitiveness (winning at all costs, based on external outcomes), to definitions of healthy competition that involve skill development, growth, and progression in individual players.
Key learnings & What I'll take onboard when coaching girls
Beyond spending a great day with Nike, Next, and the girls, I’ve learned valuable insights while engaging with the research that motivated this event.
These are some of the key points I'll take on board when coaching girls (and women of all ages) in skateboarding:
Girls in sports thrive when they have female coaches to look up to.
Girls thrive in a positive environment that rewards effort and trying new skills over "winning".
Girls want a sport experience that both focuses on having fun and challenges them.
And why does all this matter? Beyond the obvious health, mental, and social benefits of sports, I’m a big believer that if you can feel bold and empowered in your sport, you’ll feel bold and empowered in every other aspect of life. BIG YES to reminding young girls they can do hard things, ‘risky’ things, extreme things, and BIG things.
Photos by Nike.