There is no room for indifference when it comes to supporting women in leadership roles in sports.
Those are the words of Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros (main image, right), the global chief executive officer of Sport Integrity Global Alliance, at the closing of the #SIGAWomen Summit on Female Leadership 2023 early this morning (Malaysian time).
“I would like to appeal to all of you, not to be indifferent, not to be a bystander, not to think of this as just a women’s issue, or that it is just an issue for some,” said de Medeiros.
“Equity and women in leadership positions are our issues, and this is our moment. This is a moment where we must pick a side, take a stand, and be accounted for.”
After eight hours of intense discussions at the Mastercard Tech Hub in Manhattan, New York, the leader of the world’s largest coalition for integrity in sport labelled himself a “troublemaker”.
“I am a troublemaker because I dare to believe that if we really want it … if we are really committed, we can make it happen.
“If we had the opportunity … if we could go back, would we be better? We would think more of others, less of ourselves, and give others a fair chance.”
He added that it was important to make a difference.
“I will not accept more promises. I will not accept more of the same old speeches. I will be what I have always been, a disruptor,” de Medeiros added.
Several panellists were invited to share their views at the event. They included Cassandra Browstein, product manager at Mastercard, Lorin Hamlin, Under Armour’s head of open innovation, Debbie Hewitt, chairman of the Football Association, and Mary Davis, a professor at Yale University’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs in the United States.
Some of the topics covered included women’s representation in sports, the need for men as allies, and why young girls drop out of sports.
SIGA is the world’s leading organisation for Sports Integrity. Supported by more than 200 international multi-industry partners, the organisation creates a new landscape for the global sports industry by promoting the implementation of the highest integrity standards and delivering independent global ratings and certifications for sports.
Twentytwo13 is SIGA’s sole media partner from Asia.
