MUM’S the word this week and after the tremendous victory by Great Britain in the Davis Cup final last weekend, we must take a moment to thank Judy Murray for her persistence, tenacity and single-mindedness in ensuring that her sons got the support she felt they deserved during their early years in tennis.
It was her hard work that enabled Andy and Jamie to progress through the ranks to the elevated position they hold now. I know it wasn’t easy for Judy, but she never gave up. Not only did she create two world-class tennis players, she brought them up to respect all sports and all athletes. There are lots of mums and dads out there, unsung heroines and heroes who work quietly in the background supporting their budding stars and woe betide anyone who crosses them – they mean business.
It is these mums and dads who take on the volunteer roles at the football club, swimming club, hockey club, you name it, and believe me, sport just wouldn’t be where it is today without their support. Perhaps we at Scottish Women in Sport should be looking at an award for Best Supportive Parent. However, I think the flood of nominations would give us considerable headaches and would be extremely difficult to judge.
Danni Joyce, SWiS’s RBS Sportswoman of the Year, is a case in point. With her mum, boyfriend and grandparents all in attendance at our awards dinner, she took the opportunity to thank them for all their support over the years and basically laid it on the line that she would not be where she is today without it.
In fact, her father James has gone one step further. He runs the GB Deaf Swimming website, although he would be the first to say he is not an expert in IT! You can find it at www.gbdeafswimming.org
Joyce also has to rely on her parents for financial support as she has difficulty securing funding because her disability is deafness and therefore it doesn’t fall under the Paralympic umbrella. The Deaf Olympics is separate, although in the eyes of the IOC it is on equal standing with the Paralympics. She gets no financial support from any other agencies, SportsAid don’t support deaf athletes and at present neither do sportscotland.
When you realise that Joyce, who is a student at Stirling University, is a UK Deaf Sports and NDCS Scotland Ambassador, Youth Deaf Sports Personality of the Year 2014, a world champion, double European champion and current holder of eight deaf world records and has achieved all of this through the support of her family and friends, it lets you understand the power, influence and hard work of all parents and volunteers.
But what about our young girls who have to fight against the system they are in? Perhaps they come from a background where playing sport is frowned upon if you are female. How can we help them break down the cultural barriers and get the extended family to support them in their participation in sport?
It’s not as difficult as you think. There are many sporting organisations who deliver coaching, and coach education services to those who may have experienced difficulty entering mainstream sport. They are set up to break down the perceived barriers and show how little changes can make a big difference in encouraging parental support.
Many now have dedicated staff who work with a diverse range of participants, not only looking at how to overcome the many different needs of the individual, but also bringing together players from the many diverse backgrounds that we have now in our wonderful multi-cultural society in Scotland, and helping to integrate them into sport.
This is of great benefit to society as a whole, breaking down barriers, understanding different cultures, integrating players into one team, extending the arm of friendship and support to everyone. What a better country we would be living in if we have this attitude as a priority focus for all sport and what a change it would bring to our sporting and social landscape.
Everyone can help here. Let’s all extend that hand of friendship, ask the questions, find out how we can make those little changes to help encourage everyone into sport. Only then we can understand the issues and resolve the problem.
Once you know and understand what the barriers are, you are on your way to breaking them down. As well as growing the numbers participating in sport, we are creating a better environment that we, and our future generation of Scottish sports stars, can be proud of.
Maureen McGonigle is the founder of Scottish Women in Sport
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