Strengthening Coaching with the Objective to Raise Equality

Non-Governmental Sports Organisation (ENGSO), which promotes equal opportunities, namely gender equality in coaching, and focuses on increasing the number of employed and volunteer women coaches at all levels of sport, as well as enhancing knowledge on gender equality in coach education. The project is targeted at sports and coaching organisations at all levels, more specifically coaches, trainers, former athletes, volunteers and decision makers in the field of coaching. The outcome of the project is a toolkit to support women coaches to develop towards the coaching of high performance and to create gender equality in every coaching systems.

The under-representation of women as sports coaches is evident throughout all EU Member States. Figures show that between 20-30% of all sports coaches in Europe are women and the number of women with coaching qualification seems to be even lower. Despite the dedication of stakeholders, “gender equality has not reached an acceptable level and the implementation of concrete actions is still lacking in many Member States and in the international sport movement”.

Based on these facts, there was and still there is a strong need to increase the representation of women in sport and coaching and for this reason, the SCORE project has been decided upon. SCORE project was just one instrument to implement Gender Equality in Sport.

SCORE Project specifically aimed to promote gender equality in coaching and to achieve this objective the partners developed an educational toolkit “awareness pack” aiming at increasing the number of female coaches and breaking the barriers for female coaching by innovative solutions. The toolkit includes tools both for sport organizations and for coaches. In addition, the project developed an education program for mentors, organized for the representatives from project partner organizations. After the program, the mentors assist potential female coaches in their respective countries in developing the mentees' professional and personal growth.

1. An educational toolkit “awareness pack” with tools targeted at both the sports organizations and coaches.
2. An education program for mentors and around 24 educated mentors to support potential female coaches around Europe

• National Coaching Foundation - sports coach UK
• Finnish Coaches Association, International Council for Coaching Excellence (ICCE)
• European Observatoire of Sport and Employment (EOSE)
• German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB)
• Riksidrottsförbundet - Swedish Sports Confederation
• Lithuanian Union of Sports Federations (LSTS)
• Croation Olympic Committee, Cyprus Sport Organisatin (KOA)
• Confederação Do Desporto Em Portugal
• Sport and Citizenship - Sport et Citoyennete France
• European University Sports Association (EUSA)