Denise Lewis Backs the Active Women Campaign

24 November 2009

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Denise Lewis made it to the pinnacle of her sport at the Sydney Olympics when she brought home the gold medal for the heptathlon.

Now she is backing the Active Women campaign which aims to get more women into sport. I caught up with her to talk about this campaign and life after leaving athletics behind.

- You are supporting a new campaign called Active Women which is being backed by National Lottery funding can you tell me a little bit about it?

Yes, I am working with Sport England to encourage women from disadvantaged communities and women caring for children, to play sport. Only 13% of women take part in 30 minutes of sport three times a week and we need to increase this.

Exercise is so important for our general wellbeing and especially for mum’s who struggle to find any time for themselves. It is difficult to think about taking part in sport, especially when you are busy and tired, but it does give you more energy and helps you to cope with a busy life.

For many mothers it is a case of fighting the guilt of any time you are not thinking about the family. With everything that you do with the children, you become the most insignificant thing in the house - and there is a point where you have to redress the balance because it is not good for you mentally

- How is the Active Women scheme going to get more women into sport, how is the whole thing going to work?

The scheme is going to work by funding more opportunities for women to get involved in sport, whether that is paying for childcare, or funding a new group in an area where there are currently no facilities for women.

The programme is open to applicants from sports clubs, voluntary or community organisations, local authorities and national governing bodies which provide participation opportunities in community sport. You can also apply if you want to start your own group and have a great idea that other women want to get involved in.

- Only one in eight women regularly play sport in England, compared with one in five men, why do you think women and girls are so reluctant to get intosport?

There are a number of reasons why women play less sport than men. Some girls have bad memories of playing sport at school and have never been encouraged to get involved.For others, time constraints, lack of affordable childcare, transport, cost, friends to go with and body confidence are all big factors.

- And what would like to see happen to combat this?

This initiative has to touch the women who need it and make it easy for them to get involved. A lot of women won’t know what sport is available to them in their local area and they need to be offered affordable childcare.

- And how big a role do schools have to play in getting girls interested in sport?

They are hugely important as the experiences that girls have at school, will shape their entire attitudes to sport as they get older. It’s also important that girls get to try a wide range of sports at school, so they can find something they enjoy.

When someone tells you that you are good enough, it increases ambition. They might not believe it until someone tells them.

- This campaign comes at a good time as 2009 has been a great year for women's sport in the UK with the women's cricket and football teams doing well, Jessica Enis winning in Berlin and the cycling girls continuing to lead the way how big an influence can these women be?

2009 has been  great year for women's sport and success and visibility is what is needed to encourage girls to take sport more seriously.

- How fair is it to say, as a professional sportswomen yourself, that sport in this country is very much seen from a male perspective? You only see male aspects of  football, cricket, rugby?  It’s getting much better.

When I was young, women didn’t get any column inches in the press at all and with the fantastic sportswomen coming through, we are getting a lot more coverage.

- How disheartening is that as a sportswomen?

I don’t think it’s disheartening. Obviously I would love to see more coverage, but there’s never been a more exciting time to be involved in sport and many of the success stories are women

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