Women athletes are playing an important role in Barcelona. According to data from the Sports Habits in Barcelona Survey of 2017, close to 70% of women do sport in the city, a percentage that has increased considerably over the last few years. More specifically, more than half of women swim or walk for their physical exercise, although other notable activities include use of cardiovascular devices, street running, yoga and supervised aerobic activities.
We at the Barcelona Institute of Sports have been keeping up our work to achieve full equality between men and women in the world of sport. Despite the advances made over the last few years, parity has not yet become a reality in sport. As part of the 8 March celebrations, then, we would like to involve everyone as participants in this change and give women the central role they deserve.
Path to equality
To achieve gender equity in the field of sport, we need to act with a global perspective that takes account of the various players involved. The ‘Sport and Gender’ guide highlights how, besides encouraging all women to take up sport, we need to ensure access to positions of responsibility in the field of sport, a work-family life balance regarding sport and physical activity, visibility of women athletes in the media and equality when it comes to awards handed out in women’s and men’s categories, among other things. That is why the guide offers a series of gender guidelines so that sports associations can help to build a fairer sports city.
Shared demands
Making the most of International Women’s Day, several female athletes and women linked to the sports sector have joined forces in a collaborative initiative of profiles on the Barcelona Institute of Sports’ social networks, with videos calling for the presence of women in any sport and for a change to achieve equality. The videos can be seen from this link.