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It’s a wrap. The curtain came down on the Fifth International Olympic Committee World Conference on Women and Sport in downtown Los Angeles after three days of ceremonies, keynotes and panel discussions. The conference, whose theme was “Together Stronger: the Future of Sport,” welcomed more than 750 delegates from 140 countries with the objective of analyzing the progress made within the Olympic Movement and identifying ways to increase the profile of women in the world of sport.
Presentations were packed with charts, graphs and tables showing women’s participation in the Olympic Games over the years. There were a slew of speakers spouting statistics, underscoring progress or lack thereof, and many important issues discussed – from Saudi Arabia’s participation in the Games, to policy regarding sexual abuse by coaches, to whether women boxers should be required to wear skirts.
This is a long post in which I try to cover all the conference highlights so feel free to skip to the sections and links most applicable.
The role of female athletes on and off the field of play
Overview
The International Olympic Committee (IOC), created in 1894, is a non-governmental organization based in Switzerland. In addition to coordinating the staging of the Olympic Games, the IOC and 205 National Olympic Committees collaborate with a range of public and private entities to place sport at the service of society.
For those interested in numbers, only 23 percent of Olympians at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles were women, a figure that jumps to 43 percent for Beijing 2008 and 45 percent for London 2012. While the field-of-play problem may be almost solved, inequality in the leadership ranks is still an issue.The IOC has 20 women among its 106 members and four women among its 33 honorary members. Its 15-member executive board has just two women.
The quadrennial Women and Sport Conference, held in the U.S. for the first time, set the stage for the approval of “The Los Angeles Declaration”, a series of recommendations aimed at promoting gender equality in sport and using sport as a tool to improve the lives of women around the world.
Day One: Opening Ceremony & IOC Women and Sport Awards
Opening ceremonies were held at LA Live’s Club Nokia (a bit awkward since Samsung was sponsoring the evening) and included welcoming remarks from President Jacques Rogge and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
“We’re pleased to be returning to a city with such great Olympic history,” said the IOC President. “As we join the leaders of the Olympic Movement in working toward the common goal of advancing women in sport, our memories will be taken back to those magical two weeks in 1984 when the world turned its eyes on Los Angeles.”
Anita DeFrantz, the senior U.S. member on the IOC as well as chair of its Women and Sport Commission, noted that London 2012 will feature both sexes competing in every sport on the Olympic program for the first time with the addition of women's boxing. She also called out FIFA for being the only international sports federation that has never had a woman on its governing board.
Courtesy of the IOC/Bob Long
The 2012 Women and Sport Awards were presented with India’s Manisha Malhotra winning the World Trophy for her commitment to helping disadvantaged girls progress through sport. The five continental winners were Peninnah Aligawesa Kabenge (Africa), the Bradesco Sports and Education Progamme and Centre (Americas), Zaiton Othman (Asia), Aikaterini Nafplioti-Panagopoulos (Europe), and Roseline Blake (Oceania).
After the presentation of awards, co-chair Michelle Kwan was joined by tennis legend Billie Jean King, former USWNT soccer captain Julie Foudy and world trophy winner Manisha Malhotra for a short panel discussion. Afterwards, a grand piano was rolled out on stage and I was half hoping for Billie Jean King’s BFF Elton John to perform but instead we were treated to a song by Russian-American songstress Elizaveta. Later, a rousing acapella performance by students from the nearby Archer School for Girls delighted dinner guests.
Day Two: Government, Legislation and Attitudes
This year's conference coincided with the 40th anniversary of Title IX, the landmark U.S. legislation that opened high school and college athletics to women. The timing was fitting since much of the focus over the three days was on how to how create gender equity for women as both athletes and leaders around the world.
On Day Two of the conference, I attended a session entitled “Government, Legislation and Attitudes” chaired by IOC member Lassana Palenfo from Cote d’Ivoire. Simultaneous translations allowed speakers to speak in
