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Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation welcomes decision to include women in Oxford and Cambridge annual boat race
The
Women's Sport and Fitness Foundation (WSFF) has welcomed the decision
to move the Women's Boat Race alongside the men's from 2015.
Commenting
on today's announcement that the Women's Boat Race will be given equal
funding and be shown on the BBC, Chief Executive of WSFF, Sue Tibballs,
said:
"Today's news is a huge step forward - not just for
women's rowing but for women's sport in general and demonstrates the
high regard in which participants, organisers, viewers and sponsors hold
women's sport. The fact that the new sponsors of the boat race were so
keen to see equal billing for the Women's Race is particularly
encouraging.
"WSFF has consistently campaigned for
greater investment and profile for all women's sports, including better
media coverage of women's sports which our research shows 61% of sports
fans want to see.
"We've
been calling for this change for the last eighteen months so we applaud
the organisers, BNY Mellon and the BBC for their commitment to the
Women's Boat Race and hope that this decision provides further
motivation for the governing bodies of other sports to up their game
when it comes to increasing the funding and visibility of female
sports."
Baroness (Tanni) Grey-Thompson, Chair of the Commission on the Future of Women's Sport (supported by WSFF) said:
"This
is a fabulous step forward in the evolution of women's rowing and will
encourage and inspire many more young women into the sport. 60% of girls
tell us that seeing women's sport on TV inspires them to be more
active. I am also particularly pleased about the equal access to
training venues and how it will raise the profile at University level. I
hope that other sports will follow suit in recognising the importance
of women in sport."
Notes to Editors
1. WSFF is the UK charity that campaigns to raise awareness of women's
sport and make physical activity an everyday part of life for women and
girls.
2. Women's sport is chronically underfunded,
receiving just 0.5% of all commercial investment into sport but this
decision, which follow's on from last year's partnership between
Investec and women's hockey, is part of a growing trend of businesses
who are waking up to the huge commercial potential in women's sport.
For further information please contact: WSFF press office on 07900 195 538
