🇬🇧 Breaking Stereotypes in Sport: understanding gender to build healthier futures
- gens
- 2 ore fa
- Tempo di lettura: 2 min
A project co-funded by the European Union
Why do so many girls stop playing sport during adolescence?Why is a boy who chooses dance treated differently from a boy who chooses football?
The answer lies in gender stereotypes — social expectations that tell us what is “right” for boys and what is “right” for girls.These stereotypes influence confidence, wellbeing, and even long-term life choices.
GENS – Gender Equality Needs Sport works to break these barriers from where they originate: the sports field.
“A child shouldn’t have to choose between being accepted and being themselves.”Coach, Italy
What do we mean by “gender”?
Gender is not biology — it is social construction.It refers to ideas, expectations and roles that society assigns to women and men, long before personality and identity can fully express themselves.
These ideas are often oversimplified:
Masculinity | Femininity |
Strength | Sweetness |
Competitiveness | Care |
Leadership | Support |
Resistance | Elegance |
These stereotypes don’t reflect reality — they restrict it.
How stereotypes affect children in sports
The construction of gender identity begins in early childhood, often reinforced by environments such as:
family
school
media
sports associations
Already in kindergarten, children classify activities as “for boys” or “for girls”.The result?
❌ Fewer girls feel welcome in sports considered “physical”❌ Boys avoid sports associated with “softness”
“When I said I wanted to dance, my friends laughed. When my sister said she wanted to play football, people stared. Why?” Boy, 12 years old – Lithuania
These reactions have consequences on:
mental health
body image
social inclusion
personal empowerment
The power of sport for physical and mental health
According to the World Health Organization:📌 Adults should do 150 minutes of physical activity per week📌 Children and youth should do 60 minutes per day
Sport reduces the risk of:
obesity
cardiovascular diseases
stress and anxiety
mild depression (up to −12% cases, Veronesi Foundation, 2017)
So every child who stops practicing sport due to stereotypes is a child who loses well-being.
Gender gap in sports participation: the numbers
Data source | Key findings |
Eurostat 2020 | 45% of European men over 15 practice sport weekly vs 40% of women |
ISTAT Italy 2017 | 29% of men practice sport regularly vs only 21% of women |
EIGE 2015 | Women hold only 14% of decision-making positions in sport |
Even in coaching, women remain underrepresented:👉 Only 20–30% of coaches in Europe are female.
Equal access to sport is far from achieved.
Why sport is the right place to start change
Sport teaches:
🏅 resilience🏅 cooperation🏅 self-confidence🏅 leadership🏅 respect
These skills shape personalities and future opportunities.
Sport can either reinforce stereotypes or dismantle them.
GENS chooses the second option.Through training, shared tools and innovative activities, we will help sport become:
✔ inclusive✔ educational✔ stereotype-free
“When children train together — boys and girls — differences disappear. At the end, all you see is the joy of playing.” Coach, Portugal
Together, we can rewrite the rules of the game
Stay connected 📲
Follow the project and our journey toward equality in sport:👉 www.oltrenetworklab.com/gens