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In Memoriam: Mary Campbell (1910-2009)
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A feminist is “Anyone who advocates for the right of a woman to choose her own lifestyle without hindrance, constraint or judgment”.
~author unknown
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Self Esteem Girl
“Self-esteem isn't everything; it's
just that there's nothing without it.”
Gloria Steinem
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2010
COC Women in Sport Committee and CAAWS host Women and Sport Celebration
 Back row: Debbie Pyne, Denise Coutts, unknown, Janice Dawson, Alice Humeny, Jennifer Birch Jones, Penny Joyce and Martha Deacon. Front: unknown, Marilyn Payne, Jennifer Fenton, Guylaine Bernier, Karin Lofstrom and Kathy Brooks
On February 26th, the COC Women in Sport Committee and CAAWS hosted a Women and Sport Celebration at Canada Olympic House on Granville Street in Vancouver. The event coincided with the Women’s Gold Medal Hockey Game so the attendess were able to cheer on Canada's
Canadian Women Lead the Charge
By Martin Cleary, Canwest Olympic Team February 25, 2010 In less than four hours on Wednesday, Day 13 of the 2010 Winter Games, Canadian athletes celebrated their first multi-medal day in Vancouver as female athletes used their long blades on two separate speedskating ovals and an icy serpentine bobsled track to secure one gold, two silver and one bronze.
Own the Podium? Canada's Women Still Might 24 Feb 2010, Vancouver Sun. By Chad Skelton Most of the Canadian athletes up on the podium so far have been female athletes. Read the full article Cool, cocky, confident and yes, Canadian
January 29, 2010 By James Christie, The Globe and Mail When Canada's team is led into B.C. Place stadium for the opening ceremony of the 2010 Olympics on Feb. 12, the first face viewers will see will be that of the flag-bearer revealed officially last night, speed skater Clara Hughes. They will be looking at more than the beaming smile of the 37-year-old red-haired athlete who lives in Glen Sutton, Que. They will be looking at the changing face of the Olympics in Canada. Behind her will troop more female athletes than have ever been on a Canadian Winter Olympic team. There will be faces that reflect Canada's multicultural background, more athletes who trained and were developed in Western Canada and athletes who have state-of-the-art equipment and coaching made possible by the unprecedented spending under the Own the Podium plan. 2009
Supreme Court of Canada Refuses to Hear Women Ski Jumpers
December 22, 2009 Supreme Court of Canada Refuses to Hear Women Ski Jumpers Vancouver – The Supreme Court of Canada will not hear arguments in the case of the women ski jumpers suing VANOC to participate in the 2010 Olympics, according to Ross Clark, Q.C., lead counsel for the women and a partner with Davis LLP in Vancouver. “We are very disappointed the Supreme Court of Canada does not view this as matter of national importance and will not have the opportunity to hear our arguments,” Clark said. “This case was not just about women ski jumpers. The textbook gender discrimination found by the lower court judge should have been examined by the highest court in the land in light of its significance to our Charter case.” Deedee Corradini, president of Women’s Ski Jumping-USA and long-time advocate for the women’s case, declared herself very sad that the women are denied the Supreme Court opportunity, but she and the jumpers ‘won’t give up.’ “We won’t stop working at this cause until women are ski jumping in the Olympics,” she said. “Although we are hugely disappointed by the Supreme Court’s refusal to hear us this time, we won’t give up. This is about human rights and discrimination. It’s a wrong that must be righted. “These women are ready, they’re highly skilled athletes and given the chance, would have provided Olympic spectators with a thrilling and competitive performance in February at Whistler,” Corradini pointed out. “No qualified athlete should be denied the right to participate in the Olympics because of gender.” Davis LLP, Torys LLP and Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, as well as DLF Communications Ltd., supported the women ski jumpers pro bono in their cause. Contact: Deborah Folka, APR, 604.517.1339 office deborah@dlfcommunications.com 604.312.8384 mobile Women Ski Jumpers Ask Supreme Court of Canada for Permission to Appeal
Press Release December 1, 2009 Vancouver – The women ski jumpers denied the right to participate in the 2010 Olympics will apply to the Supreme Court of Canada for permission to appeal the decisions of the lower courts, according to their lawyer Ross Clark, Q.C., a partner with Davis LLP in Vancouver. “We believe our argument has been misunderstood and that a matter of national importance is at stake,” Clark explained. “This case isn’t just about women ski jumpers. It is about the interpretation and application of the Charter and whether the Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee, in carrying out an ascribed activity of government, can be forced by a foreign entity to put a discriminatory decision into effect in Canada. “Gender discrimination is at issue here and discrimination is something we do not tolerate in Canada. We hope our highest court in the land will take a look at this case and grant our declaration,” Clark said. “In our submissions asking leave to appeal, we address VANOC’s previous statements about how it’s ‘too late’ to include the women in 2010.” According to Deedee Corradini, president of Women’s Ski Jumping – USA, she is pleased the fight to include the women ski jumpers is continuing. “We will not give up until the women are competing in the Olympics,” she said. “They deserve to be there along with their male teammates. They’ve earned it through their incredible performances on the Continental Cup circuit and through meeting every standard set by their international sports federation that recommended their inclusion in the Olympics as far back as 2006. “We are very grateful that Davis LLP is continuing to provide their services pro bono. We are also very pleased that Torys LLP, a highly-regarded law firm with offices in New York and Toronto, has offered to assist and Osler Hoskin & Harcourt LLP another highly regarded national firm in Canada has agreed to act as agents, again on a pro bono basis,” she said. “We have received support from the City of Vancouver in two resolutions passed by Council and from more than 11,000 people from all over the world who have signed our petition.” In Memoriam: Mary Campbell (1910-2009)
Team member, 1930 UBC Thunderbirds Women’s Sr. A Basketball team
  Mary Campbell (right) with Lois Fisher in 2006, and as a young woman (far right)
On March 4, 2009, Mary Campbell, one of two surviving members of the pioneering 1930 UBC women’s basketball team, passed away at the age of 98. Lois (Tourtelotte) Fisher is the last living member of the team.
During the 1929-30 season, the UBC women’s Sr. A basketball team won the Vancouver and District women’s basketball championship and advanced to play the famed Edmonton Grads, reigning world champions, to determine the champion of western Canada. Although, the Grads defeated UBC in their two-game total point series, they were unable to attend the upcoming world championships. In April 1930, Campbell and her UBC women’s basketball teammates were chosen to represent the “West” or the best in North America at the Women’s Olympiad in Prague, Czechoslovakia. After a 17-day train and boat trip to Prague from Vancouver, UBC met France, the European champions, on September 8, 1930. Playing on an outdoor cinder court with a smaller ball, baskets two feet higher than normal, and an Italian referee who spoke only French, the UBC women overcame more than their share of obstacles to defeat the French 18-14 before an estimated 10,000 spectators and capture the women’s world title. Campbell and her teammates were feted with city awards and luncheons upon their return to Vancouver later that month. After graduating from UBC in 1932, Campbell taught English and PE at high school in Penticton and Vancouver including a 23-year stay at John Oliver High School from 1938 to 1961. While at John Oliver, Campbell also coached legions of local athletes in basketball, track and field and field hockey, a few who ended up in the various Halls of Fame themselves. In recent years Campbell had been a supporter financially of both UBC women’s basketball and the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Up until very recently, she could be seen regularly in her favourite courtside seat at War Memorial Gym supporting the UBC women’s team during games. After the last game Campbell attended in February, she hosted her annual scholarship event awarding the Mary Campbell Women’s Athletic Endowment Award. The 1930 UBC Thunderbirds Women’s Sr. A Basketball team was inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in 1982. The team was also honoured with induction into the UBC Sports Hall of Fame in 1993, the Canadian Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 and the In Her Footsteps...Celebrating BC Women in Sport gallery in 2006. 2008
Province Announces Funds for Women in Sport Leadership Conference
Oct.30th, 2008
VANCOUVER – The Province is investing $50,000 to support women sport leaders in training, announced Mary Polak Minister of Healthy Living and Sport.
The $50,000 in additional provincial funding will help more women attend the ProMOTION Plus Women in Sport Leadership, Sharing our Passion event, January 22-24, 2009. The event will bring together established and respected women leaders in sport from across the province with emerging women leaders, to help develop their leadership skills and establish long-term mentorship relationships among the participants. The funding will provide women, who face financial or geographic barriers, an opportunity to attend the event. The women invited to participate will include Aboriginal women, women from minority groups and women with disabilities.
“This will be a unique development and mentoring opportunity for women sport leaders in B.C.,” said Polak. “It is through the example set by these role models that others can emerge as leaders of the future.”For more details about this event, contact ProMOTION Plus at: info@promotionplus.org
Debbie Pyne selected as ProMOTION Plus' President's Awards Recipient for 2008
 L-R: Debbie Pyne and P+ Chair, Irene Schell
Former P+ Board member, Deb Pyne was honoured on Mar.5th, 2008 at the annual Sport BC President's Awards as ProMOTION Plus' recipient for 2008. Deb served on our Board from 2002- 2007, as the Secretary, Communications Committee member as well as assisting on policy review and ad-hoc committees.
Debbie is a true advocate for women in sport, evident in her work. She was the Executive Director of the BC Ladies Golf Association for two years (2002 to 2004) and was one of the instrumental people in amalgamating the provincial ladies' and men's golf associations into the BC Golf Association. Debbie was the Managing Director of Player Development & Member Services for the BC Golf Association from 2004 to 2006 and is currently Managing Director of Player Development. Her passion for girls and women in sport comes through in all she does, including advocating for equal berths for girls and boys on the zone teams that attend the BC Summer Games. Debbie's passion for all she does, make her an excellent role model for everyone. Congratulations Deb and thanks for all your hard work!
Five CAAWS Affiliated Women Head to Beijing for Olympic and Paralympic Games
July 30, 2008
Ottawa, ON. . . Five women who have been associated with the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS) will be involved in significant roles at this summer’s Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing, China. Two will be involved as technical officials, two with the Canadian team and one will be assisting with media operations.
Betty Dermer-Norris, (Fredericton, NB) who served on the CAAWS Board a few years ago is Director, Team Operations for the Canadian Olympic Committee. She has been working for the last several years to ensure all is in readiness for the Canadian team when it arrives in Beijing. Another former board member, Anne Merklinger (Ottawa, ON), is the Director General of CanoeKayak Canada, and she will be in Beijing as the Press Attaché for the Sprint and Slalom CanoeKayak teams. She will also be the assistant team manager for the sprint team, and is excited about Canada’s athletes heading to the games. “For the first time in twenty years the Canadian Sprint CanoeKayak Team qualified crews in all twelve Olympic events. A phenomenal achievement in itself, qualifying boats for every event is a testament to the strength and depth of Canada’s paddling program.”Another former board member, Guylaine Bernier (Montreal, QC), will serve as a technical official at both the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games for the rowing competitions. At the Olympics, she has been assigned to be a Member of the Jury of Appeal and the FISA - International Rowing Federation Umpiring Commission Representative. The Jury supervises the work of the 18 international umpires and ensures a smooth technical operation of the event. Rowing will be contested at the Paralympics for the first time. Guylaine will be the President of the Jury and the FISA - International Rowing Federation Umpiring Commission Representative, overseeing all the installations and the operation of the event. She will also be part of giving an International Umpiring Seminar during the games to reconfirm the FISA umpiring licence of the jury members.Current CAAWS Board member, Moira Lassen (Whitehorse, YT) will be attending her first Olympic Games as an International Technical Official (ITO) in the sport of weightlifting. She is the only technical official selected from Canada, and is only one of 7 qualified women of the 35 ITOs in the sport. She will proudly watch as her daughter Jeane competes for a medal on August 15th in the 75kg weight category. “Being a female in the male dominated sport of weightlifting is an amazing challenge and having faced thirteen years of those challenges I feel extremely prepared for the Beijing Olympic Games,” said Lassen.Rounding out the CAAWS associated group is Barb MacDonald (Ottawa, ON) who has served as CAAWS’ Communications Consultant since 2001. She will be working with the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) assigned as an advisor to the media operations team at the National Indoor Stadium, which hosts Artistic Gymnastics, Trampoline and the finals of Team Handball. This will be her third Olympic Games working with the organizing committee to ensure smooth working conditions for the journalists who are covering the games.
Executive Director of CAAWS Karin Lofstrom is pleased to see so many Canadian women in leadership roles at these Games. “Canada has an international reputation as a country that develops and promotes women in sport leadership. I am pleased that all of these women who have played a significant role both within CAAWS, and also within their sport and professional activities will be outstanding representatives at the Games.” The Beijing Olympic Games will take place August 8 – 24, 2008 and the Paralympic Games will run September 6-17, 2008.
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Contact: Karin Lofstrom
Executive Director
613-562-5667 ext. 6043
CAAWS launches new section to Mothers in Motion website
CAAWS is pleased to introduce a new section to our Mothers in Motion website dedicated to recreation and physical activity promoters working with low socioeconomic status (LSES) mothers. It features online tools and resources to help successfully plan community-based physical activity and/or sport programs for LSES mothers and their families. A growing body of evidence indicates that socioeconomic status (e.g. income, education, occupation, family structure and social support) is a strong predictor of health, including overweight and obesity. Furthermore, a sedentary lifestyle is a health concern in the LSES population of Canadian women, and in particular mothers, yet there is a paucity of research on physical activity levels, beliefs and behaviours of this population.
To better help understand and address this issue, CAAWS has undertaken a two-year project (2007 to 2009) to determine physical activity levels of LSES mothers and to identify barriers that prevent and/or limit participation of LSES mothers in physical activities within their communities. Results demonstrate that groups defined by physical activity levels, socioeconomic status, and ethnicities have different needs and capacities, and are therefore best-supported using different strategies. Based on findings and key learnings from cross-Canada focus groups with LSES mothers and physical activity promoters, CAAWS has developed physical activity tools to assist practitioners to better address specific community issues with respect to accessibility, availability and affordability of physical activity opportunities for low socioeconomic status mothers.
From the focus group report to the comprehensive assessment checklists, this new section contains free resources and information to assist community physical activity promoters in their efforts to increase awareness of the importance of physical activity for LSES mothers. Learn more about the challenges and barriers to physical activity that mothers of low socioeconomic status face within their communities and throughout their lives. how to assess your community and evaluate accessibility, availability and affordability of existing physical activity and/or sport programs and services for LSES mothers and their families. To learn more about Mothers in Motion and/or to download copies of the tools and resources in English and in French, visit the project website. A limited number of additional hard copies are also available free of charge, with a small fee to cover shipping costs if ordering 25 copies or more. Please email your request to caaws@caaws.ca. For more information, please contact Stéphanie Parker, Marketing and Project Manager (Tel: 613-562-5800 ext. 6044 / Email: slegault@caaws.ca).
ProMOTION Plus Annual General Meeting held in Victoria, BC
 Guest speaker Dr. Liz Ashton
June 16th, 2009
ProMOTION Plus Victoria co-hosted this year's AGM held on June 16th at the Pacific Institute for Sport Excellence outside of Victoria. Irene Schell presented thank you plaques to Kelly Mann of the BC Games Society and Margo Ross of the Sport Branch for their support of the Women in Sport Leadership event held earlier this year in Richmond. Thank you to all the partners who made that event such an enormous success.
Victoria P+ Regional Committee Co- chairs Joan Wharf Higgins and Patti Hunter presented the Victoria-area “Play it Forward” “Proud to Play Like a Girl” and “In Training” grants to many deserving recipients.
Retiring Camosun College President, Dr. Liz Ashton was this year's guest speaker and also the recipient of a ProMOTION Plus Leadership award for her outstanding career contributions to women in sport.
Thanks to everyone who came out to support ProMOTION Plus! Dr. Joan Wharf Higgins Receives the 2009 President's Award
 Joan Wharf Higgins and P+ Chair, Deborah Pyne
On March 24th, ProMOTION Plus nominated Joan Wharf Higgins to receive the annual Sport BC President's Award at the reception and gala at the River Rock Casino in Richmond, BC. Joan received the award in recognition of her 10 years of involvement with ProMOTION Plus Victoria.
Joan Wharf-Higgins holds a Canada Research Chair for Health and Society and is a professor in the School of Exercise, Science, Physical and Health Education. She is an accomplished marathoner having completed 19 races and in 2009 is scheduled to compete in Eugene Oregon, New York City and Berlin, Germany.
Joan was one of the founding members of the Victoria Chapter of ProMOTION Plus in 1999 and is still actively involved. She assumed the role of co-chair in 2006. 2009 marks Joan’s 10th year of involvement with ProMOTION Plus. She plays a key role in the Breakfast Links - networking breakfasts which bring together approximately 30 – 40 women and men in sport, recreation, health and education to share and learn from each other. TELUS partnership a slam-dunk with B.C. girls high school basketball associations
Sponsorship funds annual girls and boys provincial basketball tournaments and scholarships
March 9, 2009
Vancouver, B.C. – TELUS announced today it is pleased to expand its on-going sponsorship of the B.C. High School Boys Basketball Association AAA Provincial Championship tournament to also include the B.C. Senior Secondary Girls Basketball Association and $20,000 in scholarships to assist basketball athletes throughout B.C.
“This TELUS partnership with two fantastic associations, the BCSS Girls Basketball Association and the BCHS Boys Basketball Association, and the Metro Vancouver Basketball Foundation will ensure the continued success of the tournaments and athletes taking part,” said Steve Podborski, TELUS director of Community Sports. “TELUS strongly believes in giving where we live, so we are thrilled to give a boost to these young athletes and assist them as they work hard to achieve their goals in school and on the court.”
The B.C. Girls and Boys AAA Provincial Championship tournaments are two of the premier amateur sporting events in B.C. and TELUS congratulates all the teams competing. This year’s BCSS Girls Basketball Association AAA Provincial Championships happen March 11-14. The BCHS Boys Basketball Association AAA Provincial Championships happen March 10-14, 2009.
“This is yet another example of TELUS dialling up a winner in support of our community through education and sport,” said Howard Kelsey, founder and chair Metro Vancouver Basketball Foundation. “We thank and recognize TELUS and especially TELUS director of Community Sports, Steve Podborski and CFO Bob McFarlane for making this sponsorship so exciting.”
Brett Westcott, president of B.C. Secondary School Girls Basketball Association said the sponsorship agreement between TELUS and the B.C. Secondary School Girls Basketball Association will help raise the profile of the AAA girl’s provincial championship tournament and their association to even higher levels in the community.
“Given current concerns about youth inactivity and issues like bullying, TELUS has stepped forward to support some of the future leaders of our community,” added Westcott. “TELUS deserves a big "thank-you" for their willingness to support what we believe is such a worthwhile program.”
Economic crisis is also an equality crisis - March 8, International Women's Day A message from Judi Filion, BCGEU Treasurer Source: http://www.bcgeu.bc.ca/IWD_message_2009
For many women, every day is an economic crisis. And discriminatory government policy and budget priorities are only making things worse for Canadian women. Canada has dropped 13 places in a ‘global gender gap rating' to the 31st spot out of 130 countries, according to the latest analysis by the World Economic Forum. The report looks at the gap between women and men in such areas as income, education, health and political participation. For the first time, the United States has moved ahead of Canada in this index. Significantly, the first legislation signed by new American president Barack Obama allows women to sue for wage discrimination, a measure he said is an important step toward "fundamental fairness" for US workers. In the same week, in contrast, the Harper government brought in a federal budget that further limits women's ability to pursue pay equity complaints in our country. Obama gets it. "In this economy, when so many folks are already working harder for less and struggling to get by, the last thing they can afford is losing part of each month's paycheck to simple and plain discrimination." But Stephen Harper just changed the rules to make it harder for women to get justice when they face wage discrimination. Canadian women take home an average of $27,000, compared to men earning an average $45,000 per year. There are solutions that could be immediately applied by both provincial and federal governments to increase women's income. Strong penalties for employers who practice wage discrimination; job creation in public sectors where women traditionally dominate the workforce; real wage increases for jobs in community health and community social services that government finances; easier access to training, and increased unemployment insurance. And a national child care system - the backbone of a strong economy. Good child care helps women work and stay out of poverty. A recent study shows that the number of single mothers living in poverty in Quebec has dropped by half (from 60% to 30%) in the decade since that province brought in a universal child care system. On March 8, International Women's Day, it's important we all renew our commitment to working together to achieve equality for women. Our whole society stands to gain. 2007Margaret and Helen Callaghan inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame
December 2007
We are very proud to announce that 2007 In Her Footsteps honourees, Margaret and Helen Callaghan were chosen for induction into the BC Sports Hall of Fame for 2008. This is a great honour for the sisters and it will undoubtedly be appreciated by all of their friends and family. The induction ceremony will take place on May 29th, 2008 at the 40th Annual Banquet of Champions at the Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Centre.
It has been a banner year for female athletes at the Hall of Fame, with 4 out of the 11 individual inductees and 1 team being women. This is an exciting advancement for women in sport and we commend the selection committee for showing such foresight and leadership.
The women being inducted are: Helen Kelesi (tennis), Allison Sydor (mountain biking), Helen and Margaret Callaghan (baseball) and the 2006-2007 Kelly Scott Curling Team.
For more information visit: http://www.bcsportshalloffame.com
Sports Officials Canada and Fox 40 recognize Judith Tutty Congratulations Lilo Ljubisic!LJILJANA LJUBISIC RECEIVES ACADEMY’S DISABLED ATHLETE AWARDDAPHNE,
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April 12, 2005 Host Communities Chosen for 2008 and 2010 BC Games March 4, 2005 - IWF Abolishes Gender Testing
The IWF has abolished gender testing for women. Bylaw 5 was eradicated in it's entirety.
Please note the Junior World Championshipswill be the first international competition with this new rule. Please visit www.iwf.net for more information. |
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