In celebration of International Women’s Day 2021, we spoke with a number of the female leaders in the Olympic Federation of Ireland, and asked them to reflect on the year that has passed, and asked them what we can look forward to in the coming 12 months.
We asked Sarah O’Shea (Hon General Secretary of the OFI), Georgina Drumm (Executive Board Member OFI),Tricia Heberle (Team Ireland Chef de Mission for Tokyo), Nancy Chillingworth (Team Ireland Chef de Mission for Beijing), Catherine Tiernan (Team Ireland Commercial Director) two questions.. what were their highlights from 2020, and what they are looking forward to in 2021/2. Here’s what they had to say!
Sarah O’Shea
Looking Back
It has been an extremely challenging 12 months and I have had to dig deep to keep life in check and balance. For me having a wonderful network and supportive group of female friends has shown me that family comes in all shapes and sizes. Many women who do not have what is considered the usual family structure of marriage and kids can struggle to find where they fit – the pandemic has taken a real toll on increasing that sense of isolation and loneliness. Running my Women in Leadership programme with my colleague and good friend Lisa Clancy and with the support of my OFI colleague and friend Sarah Keane has been a real highlight during that period. The sense of bringing 100 other women together to learn and provide support to each other is an invaluable network that I hope will stand to everyone that participated and provide the start of a legacy out of those difficult times.
Looking Forward
At a personal level. it has to be exploring and travelling the wonderful world we have and hopefully that will be possible later in 2021. Tokyo will be an amazing event for everyone to also look forward to and I wish all our athletes the best in their preparations.
Georgina Drumm
Looking Back
2020 shed a different light on the resilience of the Irish people and their ability to put their best foot forward, a lot that we took for granted was greatly missed, like sport and the friendships arising from the person to person interaction.I was extremely pleased that many sports found new ways to continue with training and in some cases participation all within the guidelines. In athletics I was heartened by the innovative way that our clubs and coaches found to interact with the athletes. From a competitive point the staging of our National Track and Field Championships during the end of the summer in difficult circumstances was challenging but very much appreciated by the athletes , coaches and the audience at large viewed through various mediums and in recent weeks the very successful Micro Meet in Abbotstown. On a personal note my reelection to the OFI was very gratifying and an acknowledgement that collectively as a group that the progress made to date was recognised.
Looking Forward
The return to full training and competition must be high on every ones list for 2021, elite athletes in all sports have maintained remarkable focus and like myself are looking forward to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games and indeed Beijing 2022. Nationally as a sport we must have belief that we can get back to training and some competition this year with a particular emphasis for Athletics on the return of the European Cross Country Championships to Fingal Co. Dublin, an event that the LOC has been working extremely hard on, even after the postponement in 2020 due to the Coronavirus , never losing sight of the end goal which is the successful staging of the event.
Reflecting on 2020, I do look forward with optimism and wish all sports success in the year ahead.
Tricia Heberle
Looking Back
It was a very unique and challenging year but one where I learned a lot about myself and also through the pandemic and postponement of the Olympic Games, was forced to stop and reflect on my priorities (home and work). Like everyone else, I had to find a way to operate differently and being at home for a prolonged period of time has actually been quite calming. If I consider highlights and think about celebrating women and their achievements, then I’d have to say that having a bit more time to listen and attend some CPD events was a highlight.
The OFI Gender Equality series was brilliant and I took something away from every session, I particularly enjoyed listening to Lisa Fallon, Dr Jennifer Cassidy and Dierdre Carberry, Sonia O’Sullivan sharing her Olympic Journey with our Tokyo 2020 Team Leaders, Team Ireland lead psychologist Kate Kirby talking to Sport for Business about mental toughness and presenting to a wonderful group of national federation future leaders in the Sport Ireland Mentoring programme. On top of this all the wonderful interviews I saw on social media from Irish athletes during the early days and months of lockdown, where they were sharing their realities, providing tips to keep people safe and physically active, and generally inspiring both local communities and the nation.
Looking Forward
The Olympic Games going ahead, continuing to lead the Tokyo 2020 campaign and work with the OFI and Team Ireland staff on all the things that we need to finalise to support the athletes.
Nancy Chillingworth
Looking Back
I suppose for me the biggest professional highlight was being appointed CdM for Beijing 2022. It is such an honour to lead Team Ireland to an Olympic Games and will certainly be the realisation of a dream next February. As you say it was such a surreal year but one of my personal highlights was observing how truly amazing and resilient our young people are. I look at my eldest daughter and her teenage friends and have been so impressed with how they have adapted to online learning and being isolated from their peers. The responsibility and maturity they have shown makes me very positive for the next generation of female leaders.
Looking Forward
In terms of the year ahead I feel very privileged and fortunate to have 2 Olympic Games to look forward to within the next 12 months. There are certainly some challenges ahead with delivering safe games but I am relishing the opportunity to work with Team Ireland to provide the best support we can to enable Irish athletes to go to the Games and perform. So many people have faced so much hardship over the last year and I truly believe that seeing Team Ireland athletes compete at the highest level in Tokyo and Beijing will bring a much needed lift to the nation.
Catherine Tiernan
Looking Back
The past 12 months has definitely reinforced the need for a positive mental attitude (!) and how good relationships are key in all aspects of life. It would be amiss to say that the rescheduling of Tokyo didn’t present us with many challenges but at the same time I have been buoyed by the teams response and feel we have almost become stronger because of it. I have taken strength too from our team sponsors and their unwavering support.
One of my daughters is in her leaving cert year and she, like our athletes, has had to refocus and stay strong, I’ve been so impressed in terms of her resilience and resolve.
Looking Forward
Naturally I am looking forward to Tokyo and I am excited by a lot of our upcoming sponsor activations in support of the team. This will be a very different Games but at the same time I am surrounded by a lot of energy and creativity, so you can expect a truly amazing event both at home in Ireland and in Tokyo itself.
On a personal level I am really looking forward to meeting up with friends and family, and with my colleagues. A little less zoom, a little more sunshine and maybe even a trip or two 🙂
A Gender Balanced OFI
For the OFI, 2020 was a significant year in terms of gender balance. The member federations of the OFI voted for a 40% minimum gender balance on the board of our NOC (National Olympic Committee) in September, and in December when the EGM took place, the final count of votes showed a 50% gender split on our Executive Board for the first time in history!
In addition, a motion proposed by the OFI President Sarah Keane to the board of the EOC was passed, leading to a 30% minimum gender balance being voted in by the European Olympic Committees. Sarah Keane holds the position of Chair of the EOC Gender Equality Commission.
In July the OFI held a series of webinars which saw experts in the field discuss a range of topics pertaining to Gender Equality in Sport.
Watch the series here:
Today Indeed, Official Partner to Team Ireland for Tokyo 2020, launched a video with Sanita Puspure, double Olympian, double World Champion, and double European Champion.
