Call to nominate women in sports for awards
JOBURG – Women are deliberately targeted in these awards in order to correct the skew gender participation, says Lottering.
Nominations have opened for the Johannesburg Women in Sports Awards for 2021 and local sporting bodies are urged to nominate their female stars.
The closing date for nominations is December 31 and the gala event is set to take place on February 5 next year at a venue still to be announced.
Making the call for nominations was the president of the Gauteng Sports Confederation, Vivian Lottering who heads the sports mother body in the province that has five districts including Johannesburg.
Each district hosts its own Women in Sports Awards and all those winners are banded together to compete for the provincial accolades under the Gauteng Women in Sports Awards expected to be held in March next year on a date and at a venue still to be announced.
In an interview with Alex News, Lottering said the awards were meant to be a sweetener to attract more women and young girls to play an active role in the various sporting codes, either as athletes, administrators, coaches or as sports commentators for radio and TV stations, and scribes for various publications.
“We are deliberately targeting women with these awards in order to correct the skewed gender participation in key positions in sport which are still male dominated up until now.
“In order to bring about gender parity in sport, we need to deliberately push policies that are aimed at empowering women to take up these key positions in the sport. If you want a job done, give it to a woman and you will see wonders,” Lottering said.
He pointed out that out of his 11-member executive of the confederation, six of them were women while in the top three positions, two of them were held by women. “I am the only man there on top sandwiched by two vice-presidents and I hope in the next elections in 2024, we may see one of the two women elevated to the topmost position though it all depends on how the votes go.”
Lottering said in the Ekurhuleni Sports Confederation where he comes from, his deputy was a woman, Lindiwe Khumalo, who then succeeded him when he moved to the provincial structure.
