Sport Minister Dale Butler set out in detail plans to get more women involved in sports in Bermuda

These included:

Promotion through television and print media;

A Women in Sport website;

Sponsorship programmes;

A Women in Sport Conference;

Community alliances like Big Brother, Big Sister, the Bermuda TB Cancer Association, End to End Walk, YouthNet and Bermuda School Sports Federation Ltd. (BSSF).

The ideas have been recommended by the "Women in Sport" Committee Report, first presented to the House of Assembly in January.

Mr. Butler told the House on Friday that a substantial proportion of women in Bermuda did not participate in sport and physical recreation.

He said women were under-represented in leadership and decision-making within sport and sport-related organisations.

According to the report, those responsible for these areas should develop policies, programmes and design structures which increase the number of women coaches, advisers, decision makers, officials, administrators and sports personnel at all levels with special attention given to recruitment, development and retention.

He said the report also recommended that women in Bermuda were actively encouraged to apply for positions as coaches, administrators, referees/umpires and officials.

"A directory of women in management, coaching, administrative and official positions in sport in Bermuda should be compiled, and monitored and the trends published," he said.

Mr. Butler spoke of the importance of mentoring programmes.

"The objective of a mentoring programme would be to develop relationships where young women can visibly see the benefits of participation in sport in addition to having a resource available as they face challenges in their efforts to lead healthy lifestyles and achieve their personal goals."

He said using current elite athletes as mentors for up and coming young athletes was important to this process, as was matching former athletes, working in local and international business, with young women in sport with the goal of exposing them to life after sporting careers and showing them how to integrate and maintain a healthy lifestyle once a sporting career is over.

"Bermudian women and girls, regardless of social, economic, cultural or physical backgrounds and circumstances, should have opportunities equal to those of men and boys to participate in every aspect of sport, recreation and physical activity and, when they do so, should be treated equal," he said.

Mr. Butler said the Department of Youth, Sport and Recreation would work with relevant organisations to develop, upgrade and maximise use of facilities, consistent with a sporting environment that provides equal opportunities for men and women.

The report recommended that the design of women-friendly sport facilities should follow five key themes including confidence, comfort, choice, convenience and consultation.

Strategies were put forward to help ensure equitable access by women's sporting groups to all sports facilities.

These included consulting women in funding decisions and encouraging agencies to fully account for the needs of all women in relation to sports facilities, particularly in terms of planning , access, upgrading and support for facilities for child minding. It was also proposed that the use of facilities should be maximised by appropriate and modified design.

Mr. Butler pointed out that safety issues, such as close parking, appropriate lighting, lane-ways, access and the accessibility of public telephones be considered. He said having established a set of recommendations, it was important to ensure that progress was measured, reported and celebrated.

"An annual report should be compiled to highlight the progress that has been made. Good practice amongst schools, clubs, National Sport Governing Bodies and Government should be identified, and the most innovative and creative initiatives to address the issue should be disseminated and promoted across Bermuda," he said.

Talking about the development of female athletes Shadow Sports Minister Jon Brunson said: "There doesn't appear to be a clear defined developed strategy for athletes."

He lamented the decline of fast-pitch women's softball since the heyday of the Big Blue Machine.

"Female fast pitch soft ball is dying or dead."

He said problems recognised in 2002 were only now being acted upon and female national sports needed to be developed.

Help was needed for busy single mums to get the chance to enjoy playing sport but he said steps needed to be taken to allow youngsters to enjoy their sport all the way through.

The Government's own throne speech had noted the noticeable decline in female participation in sport, he said.

One factor was mixing boys and girls in sport said Mr. Brunson who quoted the example of soccer where they younger girls could compete with their own age group but were shunted aside as they got older and were physically unable to compete.

Separate teams were needed said Mr. Brunson who noted the success of single sex school the Bermuda High School for Girls for the first time taking the island-wide track and field championship.

He suggested Bermuda follow American legislation which only allocated funds to sports which gave equal funding to men's and women's sports.

"If you want national funding you have to demonstrate you have complied with equitable distribution of financing."

Former Sports Minister and former New York Cosmos star Randy Horton said women were not looking for national sports.

But he agreed they were looking equal funding and opportunities.

He recalled his time working as a women's soccer coach in Washington and how receptive the women were.

"The women all sat below me with their mouths open."

"The boys don't want to hear it, they know it all."

He spoke of the initiative to pair teams to pair up with workmen's and community clubs but said Bermudians tended to be set in their ways and likely to resist.

There is Government-sponsored study being conducted on Bermuda's sports clubs, said Mr. Horton. "We have our eye on the ball."

Women needed to get involved at all levels of sport said Mr. Horton - including refereeing, administration and officiating.

Shadow Seniors spokeswoman Louise Jackson said the subject of sport was very close to her heart as she taught physical education for women for years.

She said sport for youngsters used to be better organised for girls than boys in years past but the situation had been reversed.

"We have 52 percent of our population yet they are getting zip as far as funding sports is concerned."

Girls paid the price through lack of sports opportunities with obesity and osteoporosis, said Mrs Jackson.