2020-2021 Women in Sport Leadership Snapshot

In a year where COVID-19 unfortunately sparked a “she-cession” that threatened to roll back economic progress of women, it is encouraging to see key sport leadership roles held by women either hold steady versus one year ago or move slightly up. But, while progress is exciting, at the current pace, the national level of sport will not reach gender parity on boards until 2037 – 12 years past the Government of Canada’s target date of 2024 for achieving gender-balanced boards. Intentional and sustained action is required.

Canadian Women & Sport releases a yearly “Snapshot” of gender diversity in sport leadership, reflecting gender composition at the board and senior staff level. This Snapshot is based on a survey of Canadian National Sport Organizations (NSOs) and Multisport Service Organizations (MSOs).

Our goal? To review and reflect on the Canadian sport system’s progress toward advancing gender equity, to create conversation and to spark action.