Written by “I think it’s a fantastic time to break that glass ceiling and see more females in male-dominated areas.” – Eloise Sheridan
Women are not better than men, this is an unequivocal fact, and it is true that men can do some things better than women. But an inclusive culture will not preclude a woman from being engaged in roles that she can perform equally as well as a man.
Eloise Sheridan and Claire Polosak have just been contracted to serve on the Cricket Australia 2021-22 Supplementary Umpire Panel. These two women were first paired together in 2018-19 to umpire a WBBL match, the first time the tournament had witnessed two female on-field umpires. In February 2019, Sheridan had partnered Mary Waldron to become the first female on-field umpiring duo to officiate a South Australian men’s first-grade match.
Sheridan commented on how well-received they had been during that game. “It was a challenging match, so a couple of teams go pretty hard at it but is was pretty nice to go out there and not be seen as anything different. I think the guys here in South Australia have been great in how they approach us.” – Eloise Sheridan
A principal within sporting organizations referred to as hegemonic masculinity restricts women’s access to leadership positions. Research has indicated that men maintain control of athletic senior leadership positions and enjoy higher rates of organizational success and a greater influence of power. In 2014 eight former female basketball officials from diverse states in the US were canvassed on their experiences in their roles. Regrettably they felt that social inequity for female officials and the exacerbation of gendered abuse, undermined their ability to experience a sense of community and realization of authority in the workplace. These factors ultimately led to them vacating their roles. Title IX was initially enacted by the federal government in the United States to ensure equal educational opportunities for males and females, but eventually it was used to create equal opportunities for women in sports. The focus was to shatter stereotypes and disrupt the notion that sport is a masculinized entity and that women were perceived to be encroaching on male boundaries. It has been already proven that a more balanced male and female board in sports governance contributes to a better work environment.
Women have contributed greatly as worthy sporting competitors, and very slowly women, and girls, have been granted access to sports that had traditionally been conceived as the dominion of men. Given that successful move, it is definitely time to open the doors to those leadership roles in the sports as well. Women Sport Australia is an organization that is celebrating the success of women in leadership roles in sport, particularly those sports thought of as belonging only to men. This organization delivers training and mentorship to actively promote female officials and managers and goes a step further to encompass women who are geographically unable to forge an inroad for themselves.
The recognition of women as leaders is not necessarily new but allowing them access to areas in sport that had been deemed ‘off limits’ is a very positive step toward gender equality in sport and a balanced and fair culture.
thesportjournal.org/article/examination-of-gender-equity-and-female-participation-in-sport/