“The media plays a powerful role in shaping perceptions of women in sport, which carries a significant responsibility.

Meet Olga Bagatini, a journalist and activist advocating for greater participation of women across all areas of sport. She has developed several sports and gender projects, including a training manual to help journalists promote stereotype-free sports coverage, and a campaign to increase the presence of women athletes on Wikipedia. Currently, Olga works at UN Women as a partnership and advocacy specialist, using sports to empower girls and women.

GENDER STEREOTYPING IN SPORT

“When I was a child, I had a female physical education teacher who separated boys and girls in class. The boys would play ball sports, while the girls did stretching, dancing and other activities seen as more ‘suitable for the female body’. I was only young but I raised a small riot to give the girls the chance to play the sports the boys were. This experience taught me the importance of taking a stand, and it highlighted the barriers we can face - even if I didn’t yet know what gender stereotyping meant.

I started my career in sports journalism, but ended up moving into activism (which led to my work at UN Women) because of the situations I experienced and saw happening around me.

“I believe that transforming discomfort into motivation and finding the courage to break from tradition to pursue what you believe is right can be the driving force behind changing the world and finding purpose within your field."

BARRIERS TO DIVERSITY & INCLUSION IN SPORT

“Women in sport still face considerable barriers that limit their participation and representation. Some of the barries to women in sport are below

• Lack of women in leadership positions and gender equality in governance models

• Violence and discrimination against women and girls in society and sports

• Unequal of economic opportunities and sponsorship for women’s sport

• Gender stereotyped and unequal media and sports coverage

• Limited encouragement, access and opportunities for girls and women to practice sport and physical activity on equal terms

It is essential that sports organisations and governments create and enforce policies and strategies to tackle each of these barriers. This also requires implementing monitoring and evaluating systems to report on annual progress. A fundamental step is increasing the number of women in decision-making positions to help create these strategies. Rules such as that of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which recommends for 30% of women in leadership positions in National Olympic Committees, are a start, but these quotas need to be made compulsory and monitored by those international organisations.”

THE ROLE OF MEDIA IN SHAPING PERCEPTIONS OF WOMEN IN SPORT

“The media plays a powerful role in shaping perceptions of women in sport, which carries a significant responsibility.

Our project at UN Women, in partnership with the International Olympic Committee, trained journalists covering the Paris 2024 Games in stereotype-free, gender-sensitive coverage. This training addressed “historical mistakes” that have been reproduced for decades and have helped to reinforce discrimination against women's sport, impacting funding and participation levels.

We started this dialogue for the Olympics, but the ideal is for sports newsrooms, the mainstream media and the sports organisations themselves to hold frequent dialogues with the press, communication departments of sports organisations, and content creators to understand and address the current challenges of women's representation in the media. And of course, diversity is crucial, not only among the athletes portrayed but also among those who tell their stories, to ensure richer, more authentic narratives.”

OLGA’S EXPERIENCES AND CHALLENGES IN SPORTS JOURNALISM

“In 2014, when I began working in some of Brazil's most traditional newsrooms, women were rarely editors or reporters. Often, the quota for women was filled in internship or trainee positions. My story pitches were rejected because the men running the paper didn’t find gender issues or women’s sport compelling enough. This created a homogeneous journalism landscape that failed to represent Brazil's diverse population.

Men prioritised hiring other men, leaving women in temporary, underpaid roles, which contributed to a sexist portrayal of women in sport. Although journalism is no longer my direct focus, I now work to support women journalists and to strengthen the field overall rather than seeking the spotlight myself. Encouragingly, there’s a growing commitment to diversity in sports newsrooms, with more women and Black journalists bringing richer perspectives to the coverage.”