Southern Sports Academy has partnered with the Wagga Wagga City Council to
develop a suite of eLearning modules for their young athletes as part of the Your Local Clubs
Education Program, focusing on the importance of respectful relationships and gender equality in
sport.
To address Wagga Wagga’s higher than average rates of domestic and family violence, the
partnership further embeds the efforts of theDVproject:2650, which Council runs with project
partners Wagga Women’s Health Centre.
Southern Sports Academy Chief Executive Officer, Mark Calverley said the training modules will
empower conversations on the importance of gendered relations in sport and at the Academy.
“We all know that sport is integral to the lives of many Australians, and is an important and
influential social institution for many junior athletes,” Mr Calverley said.
“Southern Sports Academy has a responsibility to the community and to our athletes to promote
respectful relationships between boys and girls, women and men.
“To change the attitudes and behaviours often ingrained in sport, we need to create programs,
which provide learning opportunities and skills that will not only benefit them in their sporting
careers, but also in their personal development as community ambassadors.”
Southern Sports Academy is recognised locally and state-wide as an industry leader in pre-elite
sports development, where sport can use its influence to extend the principles of equality and
fairness beyond the field.
The suite of eLearning modules was developed to educate SSA athletes about respectful
relationships, challenging set gender stereotypes and norms and teach them about safe bystander
actions they could undertake.
Equity Project Manager, Maryna Bilousova is hopeful of the impact this training will provide to
junior athletes, looking at where inequalities lie and how to effectively address them and call it out.
“Sport can empower, motivate and inspire change on and off the field and in order to break the
cycle of violence, it is important to educate the community’s youth, who are the next generation of
leaders,” Ms Bilousova said.
“The training modules will assist SSA athletes to recognise and call-out inappropriate behaviour
and make it easy for young men and women to make a difference.
“We know the voices and actions of our young men can be part of the wider solution, to challenge
attitudes and every day sexism and stereotypes, which enable violence against girls and women to
continue.”
TheDVproject:2650 and Council’s Equity and Respect team are made possible through NSW
Government funding received by Wagga Women’s Health Centre in 2018 and is delivered by
Wagga Wagga City Council.