By Elisha Holt
Sport England’s “This Girl Can” campaign has taken the country’s women by storm with statistics suggesting the campaign has got more than 1.6 million women exercising.
The campaign was initially started to try and combat the post- 2012 Olympics slump which saw a huge decline in the number of women taking part in sports and exercising. It aimed to break the stigmas which many women felt they faced when exercising, one of the main ones being fear of the judgement.
The videos and posters created for the campaign depict women of all ages, shapes and sizes taking part in a range of sports with hard hitting slogans emblazoned over them, showing they have no reason to be embarrassed.
The confidence needed to take part in sports is something many women lack; Kaylee Barnes, 19, teaches dance and majorettes to girls age 3 upwards at Heatwave Entertainment: “I teach because I enjoy seeing young girls being active and having fun, I like to see them improving.”
Kaylee also explained how she went to an all-girls school and therefore didn’t experience the judgement when taking part in sports many girls do until reaching college, which she described as off-putting, but didn’t allow it to stop her.
Jenny Marchant, also 19, decided to take up a sport when she started university as a way of socialising as well as a method of stress relief: “I think it’s important to for women to take part in sports as it breaks stereotypes.”
She complimented the campaigned stating: “It helps bring awareness of health and fitness for women to the forefront of society.” Jenny also appreciated the range of sports covered in the This Girl Can campaign, as her choice of Ultimate Frisbee is often viewed as an unusual one.
Both Kaylee and Jenny agreed that they wanted to have fun whilst they exercised, whether they look ridiculous or not – and that is the embodiment of the This Girl Can campaign: Who cares what women look like when they’re exercising, they’re doing what they want to do!
The campaign has already achieved so much but there is definitely more that needs to be done for women in sport; increased media coverage and recognition of women in sport, accessibility in every sport at any age group and the continuing conversations to improve participation in sports for women – but the This Girl Can campaign was definitely the kick-start everyone needed.