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A new cohort of female Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth Games athletes is about to embark on a course designed to help them transition from the field of play to sport leadership. 

The Wahine Toa Leadership Programme was launched in New Zealand in 2017 (previously referred to as WSLA) and has helped around 40 female Olympians transition from sport performance to leadership roles including coaching, governance and change management.

16 women have been selected for the third intake:

The programme comprises three residential workshops, special project work, facilitator training and support, networking and mentoring. The sessions will see the former athletes develop their confidence and leadership competences and be linked into a global network of female leaders in sport.

Wahine Toa alumni including Jackie Smith OLY#847, Hannah McLean OLY#932, Angela Walker Subramaniam OLY#579 and Alexis Pritchard OLY#1196 will be running several of the sessions.

NZOC President Liz Dawson says the NZOC facilitates the programme in efforts to help diversify New Zealand’s sporting leadership.

“Unfortunately women are still woefully underrepresented in sporting leadership roles and boardrooms across the country,” said Dawson.

“It’s really important we have more women in decision making roles in high performance sport to ensure a balanced view in leadership decisions, and this programme is helping to make that a reality.”

The Wahine Toa programme is directed by Robyn Cockburn, and Lesley Ferkins (AUT) as Lead Facilitator with Pauline Harrison the Facilitation Development Manager. It is part of an international network with more than 400 graduates from 50 countries.

The programme commenced with Workshop 1 being held 4th - 6th May 2023.


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