Anne Stanley (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Australia is a proud sporting nation. That sporting story would not be possible without women. In recent weeks as a nation we've celebrated their achievements across a range of sports from tennis, netball and cricket to hockey, swimming and sailing and many others. Just over a month ago, as Ash Barty became tennis world No. 1 following her success in the French Open and the Birmingham Classic, Hannah Green, ranked 144th in the world, won the Women's PGA Championship in Minnesota in the USA—the third Australian woman ever to win a golfing major. But we need to recognise lots and lots of other women. There were two more fantastic achievements: the Australian Diamonds winning the silver medal at the Netball World Cup, and the Australian women's cricket team retaining the Ashes. Over the weekend, the Australian women's captain, Meg Lanning, broke her own record for the highest score in a T20 international match. Last night, Ellyse Perry became the first cricketer of either gender to score a thousand runs and take a hundred wickets in international T20 matches—quite an achievement. I'm sure the women's team's form will inspire the men to win the Ashes as well—well, it better!

If you can see it, you can do it. These achievements provide, aspirations, dreams and role models to tomorrow's sporting champions. Every Saturday and Sunday morning, throughout the year, the parks and courts across Werriwa are bustling with young Australians learning the value of competition and fair play. Those values carry on through all aspects of their lives and are important to who we are as Australians. Those courts, fields, tracks, waterways and roads are where the talent you see at events like the Olympic Games, the Winter Olympic Games, international matches and grand finals is fostered. These kids are often living out their dreams of their heroes on television.

We must give young women and girls across this country visibility of just how successful this country is in women's sport. Without that visibility, the moments in the backyard and on grand final day are lost. Those moments give birth to our sporting heroes. Unfortunately for women, this is extremely difficult. Despite the amazing successes across many sports for many years, women's sport rarely receives the mainstream coverage that men's sport does. When I see boys and girls together on the playing fields throughout my electorate, they're playing with equality. But when I see the sponsorships and mainstream media coverage of women's sport, it is really disheartening. It's not just the women competitors who are their own and our own sporting heroes; it's the mums, guardians, administrators, referees and other officials who are the lifeblood of our local sporting clubs and the unsung heroes of our national sporting culture.

One such example is the South West Tigers Junior Australian Football Club, based in the suburb of West Hoxton within my electorate. Last month I had the privilege of being invited to the Tigers to acknowledge and honour female participation in AFL for their special Women in Footy round. This was about recognising not just the women who play but those who coach, manage or umpire, who participate in committees and who give their free time to volunteer around the club on game day, and, needless to say, the thousands upon thousands of mums everywhere in this country driving kids to games and training, and making sure their uniforms are washed and ready. I thank the South West Tigers for inviting me to speak at the event. I especially enjoyed speaking to the women umpires. I found that their motivations, and, I'm sure, those of most other officials, were similar to the reason I started refereeing—a willingness to put back into the sport they loved. I also acknowledge the Matavai Pacific Cultural Arts performers, who provided a splendid dance presentation. I saw both of the South West Tigers Youth Girls teams play, and I wish them all the best for the season.

At all levels of sport, from local to national and international, women are vital to this country's sporting success. They are the people who create the opportunities for all young Australians and deliver the help that our professional sportspeople deserve. Australian women in sport need equal pay, conditions, access to training, sports medicine, media time and mentoring opportunities. Many of Australia's national women sporting leagues are amongst the best paid in the world, but we can, and must, do better. I congratulate our male cricketers, who, when negotiating the last players contract, fought to ensure that all cricketers, both male and female, received better conditions, and held out until this was achieved. We must salute and celebrate all women involved in sport, competitors or not, and their achievements and contributions to the achievements of all Australian sportspeople.

See this speech in context