On May 4th, 2026, the Bosnian Representative Association for Valuable Opportunities – BRAVO took part in the online check-in meeting

Educational content needs to work for the people who will use it. For GENDERWISE, involving young women in testing the e-learning platform provides an opportunity to examine how its learning materials, navigation, and activities fit participants’ needs.

A training session, a school deadline, and a competition trip can fall within the same week. For young female athletes, taking part in additional education often depends on how well learning opportunities fit around these commitments.

Sports organisations make decisions that shape athletes’ everyday experiences, from training schedules and access to facilities to funding and professional development. Women should have opportunities to contribute to these decisions and help shape the
future of their clubs.

Coaches, teammates, managers, and volunteers all help shape the opportunities available within a sports club. Men in these roles can contribute to gender equality through everyday decisions: whose ideas receive attention, who is offered responsibility, and how achievements are recognised.

Training fees, equipment, competition travel, and accommodation can all form part of an athlete’s sporting commitments. For young women balancing sport and education,
understanding how to access financial support can be an important part of planning their development.

A competition result, a coaching appointment, or a contribution to club leadership can all be stories worth sharing. Which stories receive attention, and how they are told, influence whose achievements audiences see and whose expertise they recognise.

On November 5–6, 2025, BRAVO participated in the second Transnational Project Meeting (TPM2) of the GENDERWISE – Promoting Gender Equality in Sports Leadership project, held at KEM KDBM in Athens, Greece. The two-day meeting brought together all partner organizations to review progress, refine upcoming deliverables, and coordinate the next stages of implementation across Work Packages 2, 3, and 4.

Young female athletes should be able to train, learn, and compete in an environment where they are treated with respect. Creating that environment requires clear expectations for behaviour, opportunities to raise concerns, and sports organisations
that take their responsibilities seriously.

The GENDERWISE project, funded under the Erasmus+ Sport programme, brings together research work from Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Finland, Greece, Portugal, and Ukraine to map what young female athletes and experts say about leadership, inclusion, and the road to gender equality in sport. The consolidated findings show a motivated generation ready to lead, and a system that still needs structural fixes to let them do it.

Equal opportunities in sport require attention to the different circumstances of young women. For female athletes with disabilities, participation can depend on accessible facilities, suitable information, transport arrangements, and the willingness of organisations to respond to individual needs.

A young woman’s opportunities in sport should not depend on her postcode. Yet
accessing training, educational activities, and professional networks can involve
different challenges for athletes living in smaller towns or rural communities.

Training, competitions, schoolwork, and expectations can make a young athlete’s
schedule demanding. Alongside the physical effort, there may be worries about performance, selection, disappointing others, or keeping up with responsibilities outside
sport.

Leading a team discussion, proposing an idea to a coach, or accepting a new
responsibility can be an important first step for a young female athlete. These moments create opportunities to practise leadership, even before taking on a formal role.

Despite increasing female participation in sport, women continue to be underrepresented in leadership positions, coaching staff, and management structures. Statistics show that women make up only 20–30% of sports coaches and less than 15% of leaders in national sports organizations.

Behind a young athlete’s training schedule, competition travel, and educational commitments, there is often a family helping make it all possible. From arranging transport to offering encouragement after a difficult performance, parents and guardians can play an important role in a young woman’s sporting journey.

On July 1, 2025, the partners of the GENDERWISE project, funded by the European Union, held an online check-in meeting to review progress and plan the next steps in promoting gender equality in sports. The meeting gathered representatives from Croatia, Portugal, Greece, Finland, Ukraine, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

As the GENDERWISE project enters its third month of implementation, it marks a crucial early milestone in a long-term effort to address persistent gender inequalities in the sports sector. Funded under the Erasmus+ Sport 2024 program, GENDERWISE brings together a consortium of seven partners with the shared vision of supporting dual careers for young female athletes.

The GENDERWISE project, co-funded by the Erasmus+ Sport programme, continues to make meaningful progress in addressing gender inequality in sport by supporting the dual careers of young female athletes. As GENDERWISE continues to evolve, the project remains a powerful example of how strategic collaboration, digital innovation, and a strong equity focus can create meaningful change.

Preparing for a first job can be challenging when most of your experience comes from training and competition. Young female athletes may have limited formal work experience, yet they have often spent years practising skills that are also relevant in professional settings.

A sporting career can shape a young woman’s ambitions, daily routine, and sense of identity. But what happens when competitive sport comes to an end? Whether that transition follows a planned retirement, an injury, or changing priorities, having
opportunities beyond competition matters.