Forum to foster positive environment for women is sport

One of the Bay of Plenty's leading women says culture and inclusivity are important in creating a positive environment in women's sport.

Ahead of a Bay of Plenty Sport forum to talk about how to support women and girls in sport, on June 23, Bay of Plenty Rugby Union women's development officer Kendra Reynolds says there is a lot of work going on behind the athletes.

"It is about really focusing on the culture of the environment you are creating, whether it is a team, or a team managing or coaching a triathlete. The culture is so important and so is inclusivity and removing that tall poppy syndrome."

Having role models is something Reynolds, also a Bay of Plenty Volcanix player, says plays a major role for young female athletes.

"It is incredibly important. When young boys saw the All Blacks on TV that is why they wanted to be, now we have girls who want to be a Portia Woodman.

"The cool thing about Bay people, is we are pretty chill. We just give things a go and we are not afraid to try. We do things with a lot of heart, everything we do we pour everything into doing it."

"It comes down to coaches and support staff around these athletes as well. Not just for women, but we need to understand the 'why'. I find with a lot of ladies for all levels, a lot can't just jump in without understanding why they are doing it."

Discussions around the difference in needs in training between males and females is also a discussion topic at the forum and Reynolds says it is an important discussion.

"We are doing a bit of work with our high performance at the union with females and how what training differences there need to be around certain times of the month. Around Olympic and pinnacle events, there are athletes making sure they are at a certain stage of their body cycle to be at peak performance."

The forum will include high performance sports physiotherapist Jacinta Horan, Black Ferns Sevens development manager Belinda Muller, coaching officer Trudi Kemp and psychologist Mariane Wray. Black Ferns Sevens assistant coach Cory Sweeney will be a panellist during the Q and A session.

"What we know about training, coaching, injury prevention and athlete wellbeing has typically been drawn from decades of studying males playing sport," Horan says.

"But a one size fits all approach can fail to take into account the best and most effective approaches for working with women and girls in sport."

Bay of Plenty Sport Forum
Sunday 23 June
Trustpower Arena, Tauranga.

Panellists and guest speakers:
Black Ferns Sevens assistant coach Cory Sweeney
High performance sports physiotherapist Jacinta Horan
Psychologist Mariane Wray
International hockey official Kelly Hudson
Black Ferns Sevens development manager Belinda Muller
CoachForce netball officer Trudi Kemp