WP Session 2012
Women champions – Women’s sports between past and future
The first session in 2012 took place in March, in Batyam. It was hosted by Victor Tal, the vice mayor and was organized with the cooperation of Anat Livnat, the mayor’s councilor on women’s issues. The subject of the session was: Women champions – Women’s sports between past and future.
It was convened by Linoy Bar Gefen and the panelists were: Shlomit Nir Tur, Moran Betzer and Michal Sivan. The event opened with a friendly game, organized by the Israeli women’s netball club, between members of the Women’s Parliament and the women’s netball team from Bat Yam.
The speakers emphasized the immense importance of being engaged in sportive activity, in terms of developing skills such as team work, coping with tensions and challenges, decision making, self-confidence, positive thinking, persistence etc. The Israeli club for women’s netball was described as an example of a successful entrepreneurship which has been developed from “below”, by women who worked together for a common cause. Although the club has not been recognized nor financed by the sport’s establishment, it has succeeded conspicuously in developing this sphere of females’ sportive activity. It involves already some thousands of women who enjoy both participating in a social initiative and in sports. The speakers also emphasized the fact that the poor representation of women in leading positions in sports’ organizations in Israel is the outcome of the male hegemony in all spheres of life. It was claimed that an alternative thinking is needed with regard to the structure and electing method in these organizations, which exclude women, who could contribute by far to sports in Israel.
WP Session 2010
Women and girls in Sports – Biology or politics?
The third session took place in May, in Kfar Saba. It was hosted by Yhuda Ben-Chamo, the mayor of Kfar Saba.
At the opening of the event certificates of appreciation were handed to outstanding women athletes from Kfar Saba and a fencer-duel was demonstrated.
The discussion was moderated by Michal Grunland (a sports journalist) and the speakers were: Dr. Na’ama Konstantini (sports doctor and director of a center for medical sports and phisiotherapy), Ofra Abramovitz (founder of Mamanet in Kfar Saba), Dorit Keren-Zvi (general director of the basket ball women’s team from Ramat Hasharon), Michal Sivan (one of the founders of the national women’s netball league).
The discussion focused on the question: are there any essential differences between men and women, which determine the spheres and extent of women’s capabilities in Sports. The speakers brought up historical perspectives which stressed the role of prejudices and of chauvinist approaches with regard to the opportunities that are accessible for women in sports. It was indicated that personal and collective stubborn struggles are the reason for women’s achievements in Sports. The speakers agreed that gaining equality in budgets’ allocation, in media coverage and in the opportunities that are open for women and girls in Sports is still far away from us.