International Women’s Day is celebrated annually on 8 March, with this year’s theme being #BreakTheBias. Badminton Oceania aims to combat stereotypes and dismantling such discrimination by upholding a commitment to Gender Equity across all programme areas, whether it is on or off the filed: Executive Board, Staff, Technical Officials, Coaches, Administrators, Shuttle Time Trainers, Tutors and Teachers, Players and Volunteers. The overall aim is to achieve a minimum representation of 40% of the under-represented gender by 2024.
Last year, we celebrated the likes of Northern Marianas Badminton Association who were celebrating one of the highest percentage of female board representatives in their respective country. Alongside Linda Pulsan and Nellie Leva (PNG gold medalist at the Samoa 2019 Pacific Games and Tokyo 2020 Paralympian) who leads and inspires through the Inclusive GymBad programme.
This year, members of Oceania’s badminton community shared their thoughts and lived experiences on gender equity and discussed what #BreakTheBias means to them:
Chloe Segrastan (Player, Tahiti)
“For me, International Women’s Day allows us to celebrate how women can have their own place in society. It’s important to demonstrate that all women are equal to men, they can also do men’s jobs, physical jobs, things that the society says only men can do. No, women can too! In 2022, it’s time to break the rules, it’s finally time to understand that we are equal, whether we are men, women or an undefined gender. No one should feel left out. In 2022, we must break down stereotypes, re-evaluating gender equality and finally grow up mentally! It’s never too late to change”
“”When I was young, I was often called the ‘tomboy’ but I didn’t mind because I always assumed that I had a strong character and showed everyone that I didn’t let it happen to me. Every woman has her own history and every woman has her place in society, it’s enough to show it and to be proud of it. I would like to encourage young girls to assert their character whether it’s in everyday life or on a badminton court. We shouldn’t be afraid to talk back to boys or play ‘boys sports’, and show them that we also have our place in society”
Trish Gubb (Umpire, New Zealand)
“To me this means no limits or restrictions on what can be attempted based on how society defines a person’s gender. This is part of why I am hugely proud to be a part of badminton! While there is still work to do in opportunities for participation in playing, officials and administration of badminton, these are more often societal, than related to our sport specifically. I don’t believe it is common to see women leading the technical officials team for a Men’s Gold Medal match at the Olympics”
Makiroa Mataio (Board member, Cook Islands)
“This is something that the Cook Islanders are passionate about and one which is well represented at my place of work (Bank of the Cook Islands) Where there are more women than men, giving our ‘mana vaine’ (strong women) the empowerment to grow and excel. You can be whatever you want to achieve, gender has no barriers. All of this can be achieved with the right mindset. Your knowledge, skills and expertise will get you there, but your attitude will take you even further”
Johanna Kou (Player, Coach and BOC Executive Board member, New Caledonia)
“The international Women’s day highlights the fight for women’s rights and in particular for the reduction of inequalities in relation to men. There are still wage inequalities a man earns more than a woman for the same job description. There is still violence and aggression that is tolerated against women by the male sex. The sanctions against the aggressors are not strong enough to be dissuasive, hence the recurrences. Even at the sports high level, the rewards for men are always greater than the rewards for women”
Anona Pak (Player, New Zealand)
“To me, international women’s day not only celebrates the achievements and success in those that are identified as women by sex but also individuals that are identified as women by gender. Being inclusive with and accept everyone, and not judging them based on their biological characteristics, to be able to do that, we should all be proud of ourselves”
Merlie Tolentino (President, Northern Marianas)
“International Women’s Day means celebrating and recognizing the roles that women play in our society, be in education, sports, government service, medical field, and even those who are not in the workforce and are taking care of their families. Breaking The Bias means offering the same opportunities that men are afforded to women for the latter are as equally capable as the former and can rise to the occasion”
Saintly Alesi Molotii (Shuttle Time teacher, Tuvalu)
“Break The Bias indicates and confirms to me the need to stop the bias as it is still an issue today. I believe bias is prevalent in every aspect of our lives, and that it can drive us to form prejudices against others. We know, see and learn from our experiences, that the world we live in allows for many different forms of inequalities, including gender bias with or without our consciousness”
“GenderEquity in my understanding is about fairness in outcomes. So I trust that the principles of Gender Equity breaks away any kind of barrier or tendencies of biasness that prefers one gender over another. It does not encourage bias, however, it ensures that the outcome of anything we do benefits all – men and women, boys and girls in all their diversities are valued, noting and acknowledging their differences, but working within those differences to achieve what’s best for them all”
“I would personally like to see a world where everyone works together to reduce or eliminate any inequalities and gender bias. A world where development of any kind of place, men and women (Gender) are in the center. This way I believe would ultimately build a more diverse and inclusive world where everyone and anyone feel valuable, important and ready to contribute in whatever way they can despite our differences and together we can Break The Bias!”
You can celebrate International Women’s Day too by joining in with the viral pose – see our staff in action below – and don’t forget to use the hashtage #BreakTheBias
Find out more about Badminton Oceania’s commitment to Gender Equity here.
