Austria's Athletics Shows: Women Have a Place in Elite Sports

And with Beate Taylor, a former top athlete has become the new high-performance sports coordinator in the association this year. For the 2012 European Championship bronze medalist in hurdles, International Women's Day with all its statistics should primarily create awareness. "Women still do not have the same rights as men. We need to move towards complete equality," said the 36-year-old in an APA interview.

Sure, there are still more male coaches in athletics, but overall Taylor finds the situation in Austria "not so bad." Among others, Beate Hochleitner, Viola Kleiser, Victoria Schreibeis, Leonie Springer, Karin Haußecker, and Inga Babakova are at work, and for example, Olivia Raffelsberger in Tyrol. She comes from the federal gender trainee program, which Taylor considers an absolutely valuable institution. "It has an effect and definitely leads to us having more female coaches."

Program for Promoting Female Coaches in Austria

In the athletics association, they try to promote the gender trainees "so that they can use their time optimally, learn a lot, and get the most out of it." Raffelsberger, for example, will remain in athletics. "She is doing a great job, she has a huge group. That's exactly what you would wish for from this program." During her time in America, Taylor gained a lot of insight into the "University of Florida." Although men are still predominantly engaged as coaches, "you often find former very successful female athletes as coaches in a college system."

After her active career, Taylor coached the two-time US Olympic champion and four-time world champion in triple jump, Christian Taylor, whom she has been married to since 2021. Together they moved to Austria and took over the sports management in the ÖLV. Christian Taylor acts as co-high-performance sports coordinator and also works as a coach. There is no gender pay gap, both receive the same salary for essentially the same position. For Beate Taylor, née Schrott, a "completely fair solution." With this, the association has set a "cool sign."

Athletics: Support from Association During Childbearing Phase

In sports like alpine skiing, it is often argued that the extensive travel to training courses and competitions is discouraging for women who want to establish themselves in the coaching business despite having a family. "Our female coaches are also extremely involved. Sure, the short phase in which they have children might be a challenge. But I believe it will have to develop in such a way that it is not a problem, that you are supported and the association can handle it if someone is temporarily absent," said Taylor.

Having children is a normal part of life. "I would find it wrong if female coaches were not hired for this reason. Female coaches have completely different qualities than male coaches." She herself has never felt disadvantaged throughout her career, both as an athlete and as a coach. "If ever, it was never because I am a woman. Maybe I am one of the few lucky ones."

However, International Women's Day is "absolutely" necessary, not only to draw attention to unequal pay. "If the statistics didn't exist, women wouldn't know about it. Why should a woman with the same qualifications earn less? That makes zero sense."

Equality Also Means Equal Representation

Equality also means equal representation. Therefore, mindfulness is required when selecting images. Photos of beach volleyball players seen from behind with a focus on their buttocks should be a thing of the past in reporting. As a former hurdler, Beate Taylor was used to practicing her sport in tight, short shorts. It provides more freedom of movement and better flexibility, long pants would bring no benefit, she explained. However, she did not notice any images of herself that she would have preferred not to see published.

The work attire is one thing, bikini photos as a glimpse into private life is another. "I have zero affinity for being depicted with little clothing and posted on social media," said Taylor. She is, to put it cautiously, not a fan of additionally staging herself for marketing purposes, for example. For sponsors, social media posts are essential, but as a young athlete, one must proceed with caution.

(The conversation was conducted by Birgit Egarter/APA)

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.