What started as a sport where women could compete only by disguising themselves as men has certainly evolved over the last 100 years, as reflected by the fan support evident during this year’s IIHF Women’s World Championship in Ottawa.
While the outcome for Team Canada was unfavourable, hockey as a whole can undoubtedly celebrate the growth of the sport as one that is equally ingrained in the hearts of men and women athletes and the people and organizations that support them. Female hockey players established protocols long ago that are now a standard even in the most elite men’s leagues today. Did you know that Elizabeth Graham, goalie for Queen’s University (1927) was the first hockey player to ever wear a mask?
The first witnessed account of women’s hockey took place in February 1891, by a reporter of the Ottawa Citizen. A few years later, Lady Isobel Stanley was the first photographed female hockey player in action at Rideau Hall. In the early years, women’s hockey picked up slowly among university and post-secondary clubs, however, other competitive leagues were still lacking. The Great Depression era didn’t help the case of women in sport either. After which, women’s hockey exhibited a much more dramatic growth period as more clubs outside of the university environment were being established across Canada and the United States. Where Canadian female participation in ice hockey started at a mere 9 000 in 1990, it has now grown to more than 86 000 nationwide!
As a nation, we pride ourselves as multicultural and a global leader in equal opportunity, so why not extend these opportunities into the sporting domain too? Organizations such as the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Girls and Sport Physical Activity (CAAWS) have established a plethora of programs that seek to provide unique sport involvement opportunities for girls of all ages, backgrounds, and skills. Did I mention for the first time ever, Play On! has partnered up with CAAWS to help drive this effort? Check them out at www.caaws.ca
One of our primary goals at Play On! this year is to increase the number of female participants at each of our events across Canada. My favourite thing about Play On! is that it thrives on the notion of “The more the merrier”, and seeks to be an all-inclusive street hockey festival. The great thing about Play On! is that it provides an opportunity for everyone to get back to their hockey roots with a game of street hockey. Just one problem: how do we attract girls to play in a sporting event with a participation base that is predominantly male? Personally, I think it’s just a matter of making women’s hockey more prevalent in the media, community, and providing accessible opportunities. It’s a tricky concept, because there are a lot of talented competitive and recreational female players across our landscape- some of whom are household names like Hayley Wickenheiser and some who play “just ‘cause”.
There’s a stack of suggestions out there about why girls and women tend to shy away from all-inclusive yet male dominant environments. Classic example: the weight room. Fellow weight training women you can attest to this- if you’ve just recently started integrating weights into your program, it simply feels awkward lifting, squatting, or pressing next to a row of men. Now eventually, this feeling goes away (thank goodness), but there are plenty of hypotheses attempting to explain it.
In fact, too many for this blog…
Interested to know what men can do to help and support girls in sport? Check out these tips, courtesy of CAAWS. Do you have other suggestions on how Play On! can attract females to come out and play? Send your suggestions to srahman@playon.ca and get quoted in my next blog!
