She was tall and had the arms of a prima ballerinastrong, but skinny as hell. And what of the swimsuit she misses? [00:05:55] Well I was active as a kid but I wasnt good at anything and we certainly had a bit of a culture of high achievement when it comes to sport and particularly we know this from from the data that girls who are really great at sport get supported and cultivated not only by their parents but by coaches by schools. They were married in the 1940s and went on to have six children and eight grandchildren. Mel Jones is an international test cricketer here from from Victoria was the face of that campaign but it wasnt until 2017 when the Minister for Sport announced that he would create an Office for Women in Sport that would be dedicated to pursuing the outcomes of these nine recommendations that he would staff them. [00:08:28] A friend of mine was doing a triathlon Id never ridden a bike before and Id never done a running race and Id only just swum for you know learning that school. How we overcome this hurdle of you know challenging the networks to make this free to air and satisfying the sponsors and getting the coverage that women need in the media. In road cycling, where images of men with lean, tanned legs and hollowed cheekbones had been emblematic of true professionalism, most teams aspired for the same appearance for their women riders. [00:29:45] Organisations that deliver Sport and Recreation to Victorians that are funded by government. Womens educations and capabilities are not a problem. So my mediocrity was a big part of shaping my persistence across all those sports and in rowing included I was a role for five years and an. What were seeing now is those people are being left behind. Has this been a lifelong passion and did you. Bridie O'Donnell (@bridie_od) Instagram photos and videos bridie_od Follow 6,376 posts 7,146 followers 670 following Bridie O'Donnell Eagerly anticipating my next nap This Account is Private Already follow bridie_od? And so what weve seen with now three complete seasons of AFL WS Thats the Womens Australian Rules. So the bar was really high so I got my arse handed handed to me every single race. The progress that the organization has made to advance women and girls participation in sport and the challenges that lie ahead. And I think that is a conundrum too about you know we do need bums on seats and we do need the women to be attending sports events and filling these stadiums too. Just go to the listen tab on the main menu at the top there and drop down to transcending sport and youll find all previous episodes of this show too. So they have funded a national program around women in leadership and coaching theyve basically selected 16 scholarship holders from all over the country and are cultivating those. [00:33:06] Thats what you want in the best kind of basketball coach. The third thing that was really vital for us is access to facilities. The progress that the organization has made to advance women and girls participation in sport and the challenges that lie ahead. We wont be able to convince our state politicians and federal politicians to invest in a womens football tournament. But that said you know the mens AFL league started over 100 years ago with zero scrutiny and social media to criticize it. Its all of the things that I experience which is you lose a lot. Number two increasing the number of girls and women but mostly women in leadership positions in sport more CEOs but even more importantly more umpires coaches referees visible leadership of women on fields with whistles telling people what to do is an extraordinarily powerful debunking of this myth that women dont know how to rally a team or they dont know how to be harsh or they dont know how to be assertive and firm or they dont know how to bring together twenty five guys to get them to do something thats thats a complete myth as we all know. So theres something for everyone here at WiSP Sports. She is not dating anyone. Managing their social media accounts and to make it very clear that this is a powerful image that needs to be shown and and it became an accelerated image the world started talking about this. They would have a budget over a four year cycle and they would then work alongside the Department of Sport and Rec to oversee policy. Then, in her mid-30s, ODonnell made the sharp pivot to professional cycling, a field where she found great success. So seeing those women on the field on the pool deck beside the court looking authoritative I mean some of those great images of Becky Hammon whos been the assistant coach at San Antonio looking up to those extraordinarily tall NBA players knowing that shes been a former WNBA champion herself is really powerful. [00:02:25] Well its an opportunity to learn about what you doing there at the Office for Women and Sport and Recreation because its the one and only organization of its kind in the in Australia as I understand it. conversations from the world of women's sports. Its where May speaking it you know over 120 events panels conferences et cetera in the last 18 months supports that is driving that message home that leadership can look different. That access is all a part of being accessible right the accessibility of sport. So people were engaging then theyd know they know they all know who Alex Perry and Alyssa Healy and all these players are now because they saw the footage of them they know those names are recognizable and now every woman and man who is a cricket fan in Australia they can name those players that someone said Can you name five women who play cricket. So I was appointed in November 2017. Devastatingly however, it was working: her illnessI saw it clearly as an illnesswas performance-enhancing. But you also then when you come out the other side of that and transition into civilian life as I like to call it you also realize just how unimportant that is as well. While working in Intensive Care and studying for physician exams, Bridie competed first in rowing and Ironman Triathlon. So we all bore the moody behaviour for the good of the team. Ive been an athlete than a successful athlete. Because Im most curious about this you know being in the media for as long as I have. Now if we come back to Australia and we look at the WB ls a great example we have the fourth season of The Womens Big Bash. O'Donnell went on to attend All Hallow's School in Brisbane, then gained a medical degree at the University of Queensland. They just often win because theyre the fastest. Organisations that deliver Sport and Recreation to Victorians that are funded by government. Required fields are marked *. [00:29:59] They would need to have 40 per cent women on the boards of these organisations acknowledging these were all volunteer positions. The two women who coached in the first season got and McCown one of whom won the premiership cannot get a job here. And we do look forward to continuing the conversation with you so thanks again and well stay in touch. [00:27:46] And so I would say that the London Paralympics was probably the best broadcast and profiled Paralympics weve seen and as you know so much investment went into the campaign that amazing ADVERTISEMENT Whether you loved it or not it was memorable in reminding us of the extraordinary abilities of all of those athletes that were going to Paralympics. [00:04:37] And like so many of them I took a chance of you know quitting my job as a physician where I was working behaviour change because I just felt that this was a unique opportunity and remarkable way for me to have an influence over the lives and the outcomes of so many girls and women that I didnt have when I was coming through sport and that so many girls and women who are who have a disability or who are from a multicultural background or from a marginalized communities definitely dont have in Australia. Dr Bridie O'Donnell (born 29 April 1974) is a road cyclist from Australia. These are the procedures he performs and you get a sense of the job. I mean being an elite athlete and representing your country or being the best in the world is such an incredibly privileged little bubble to live in. My concerns about that were met with derision by old, chain smoking Italian men who drove the vans and said that seatbelts were invented by the English and are a waste of time! Transcending Sport is hosted by Chris Stafford. Your email address will not be published. Because Im most curious about this you know being in the media for as long as I have. Theres no way were going to get that across the line. Weve seen as we said three seasons of AFL W and yet in this third season 0 teams of the 10 were coached by women which is mind boggling. These are the kinds of conversations he has. They drop out at all different parts of their lives milestones of their lives for example university or pregnancy or menopause or an aged parts of their lives. At 48 years old, Bridie O'Donnell height not available right now. And so what weve seen with now three complete seasons of AFL WS Thats the Womens Australian Rules. But the 41-year-old former Mapleton woman this week broke the world hour record, riding 46.882 kilometres in 60 minutes 609 metres further than the existing record. Thats sort of resistent attitude. [00:02:41] How did that organization come about when did it get its funding. Now we didnt see an increase in broadcasting of womens professional sport on Foxtel over that time and there was definitely some rattling of cans and people saying hang on a second. Chris its great to be here. What would she save in a fire, whats her most useful object? And of course theyre related. So gender diversity and having gender equality in leadership positions is an enormous priority for us. About so many things I could have done better. And if I had had men in the public service say youll never be able to be this boss of this office and run this budget do make this change because youve never done it before then. Eating little to lose a lot wasnt restricted to my teammate in Italy, and it wasnt the first or last time I would ride with a woman whose peak performances coincided with a body fat percentage edging dangerously close to a medical admission. Its a great question. Bridie We could talk for much longer but Im mindful of your time there is there really so much to cover and Yep things keep coming up that Id like to bring up but I going to let you go and get on with your day because I know your day is starting but maybe we could circle back some time and continue this conversation because I think its I would love Aston and yes I could talk about this stuff. It was free to air on Channel 10 Channel 10 did an amazing job not only of broadcasting it but as you know the power of social media of retweeting great little clips of some of the really strong athletic performances of women batting and bowling etc. I had some staff by the time we got to April 2018 and so weve been up and running. [00:25:24] Look at the proof of how thats raised the profile of womens soccer in this country because thats now on free to air TV and you can find that on the networks every week during season some of the coaches say oh sorry to interrupt you but I was just thinking about a lot of the coaches will say high performance coaches will say they still want to see people at games and that Lisa Alexander talks about this with netball and the super nimble coaches will say we want you to come. We know in many cases that can lead to violence. But there are very many ways and Peggy ONeills who I mentioned before she is an extraordinary example of a person who delivers leadership in her own style. And yet the WNBA all is a really as a league that is struggling and has struggled to get investment. Whats that look like for you now. You dont get what you want a lot. At times it turned into a battle not only against the worlds best cyclists but of also shutting out the voices bluntly telling her she was too old, too fat and too slow. [00:34:24] So theres a couple of prongs to this attack if you like. Shes very tall incredible flexibility of this photograph of her kicking so her legs completely apart almost 90 degrees flexible hips incredible flexible flexibility and strength. What Ive experienced and when I was a professional cyclist lets say 10 years ago I was in an extraordinarily talented team. Bridie what what did your main focus in the big to dos because you know youve got a huge huge agenda. Once the road went up and gravity became a factor, women whose physiology could generate power while carrying as little weight as possible were the benchmark. It became a vicious cycle. She became the first Australian woman to make an attempt on the UCI world our record in 15 years setting a new world record of forty six point eighty eight two kilometres at the Adelaide Superdome in November 2017. In 2017, she was appointed the inaugural head of the Victorian Government Office for Women in Sport and Recreation, and in 2018 she published Life and Death a cycling memoir about her experiences racing in the womens professional peloton. Of course, knowing when to stop would be the trick that allowed her to get her body to where she wanted it to be, and subsequently, to win. Well why doesnt the UCI the governing body say if you want to hold a rice race licence you have to broadcast X amount and you have to provide the footage and everyone would pass the buck and say its not their job. in Queensland to help to help them fast track their board quotas in whatever form it they are helping them learn for our from our mistakes and our lessons. [00:34:19] And how about the increase in female coaches. Where are you. And she said if thats how theyre talking about me on social media what are they. With power-to-weight ratios being such an important factor, the female athlete has a far greater risk of suffering eating disorders than does her male counterpart. So Im sorry Im getting to the roundabout part of your question but yeah I was a completely ordinary and active kid grew up in a regional part of Queensland with parents whod sort of taken a bit of a tree change and left a city to work in a very hippy sort of school I suppose it was like a Montessori or an unorganized but very creative supported school. Just go to the listen tab on the main menu at the top there and drop down to transcending sport and youll find all previous episodes of this show too. But I was a very academic kid and so I studied really hard through high school and I was completely mediocre at team sports and I wanted to be a leader like I was so desperately trying to be the best athlete and I just wasnt I didnt have enough speed I didnt have enough agility and all those things that you do when youre playing netball and touch football and some of the sports that have really big in teams here in Queensland. And were seeing this more in the States. But Im curious as to where you see the progress that youre making. Women like Angela Merkel and Christine Lagarde You know Theresa May. It doesnt all have to look the same way but no one is fully prepared for her job. But we also need the networks to to buy into it too because at the end of the day everybody benefits if they have the foresight to invest in it at whatever level. But it is frustrating when you see the standard of play in the success of play because often the argument is so well medals will will win for funding means as it does in the UK for example with lottery funding they want to see the medals first but it can be a catch 22 as well. Peggy ONeil shes the president of the Richmond Football Club here the first woman to be president of an AFL club which is no mean feat and certainly as an outsider to a non Australian. I would make some coffee and then I would eat some sort of cereal with yogurt and berries. You know all those generalised resistance statements that a lot of people have which is Im okay with girls playing footy but I dont want to watch women doing it on TV. But I did really well and I was ridiculously ambitious and I joined a triathlon squad and then I took a year out of med school like a gap year if you like and I thought to myself yep OK I want to go to the Olympics in Olympic distance triathlon but this was in an era when the Jones Emma Carney Jackie Gallagher Loretta Harrop like the best women triathletes in the world were all in Queensland. How should where should the money be directed from. But my goodness it does allow you a context and help you deal with strong personalities and we say that a lot in where Im working now as a sports administrator or working in government. Well thats like where its very nicely into my next point. So were not even retaining our high performance coaches from one Commonwealth Games to another. Now shes a young AFL footballer playing for Carlton who has not only incredible strength and agility but she has this kicking style thats very characteristic for her. So what did being a professional. She is from Australia. Right there. Okay. But as you saw not only from the extraordinary performances of the US national womens team but the one point one billion viewers and the stadiums that were packed out is that people want to see and witness the best quality sport on offer. It also saved me when we would arrive at 2.5 star motels with awful pillows that inevitably led to terrible sleep. But, like so many young women I would encounter in my time racing, she would only allow me to be a doctor on her terms. Systems around unconscious bias around myths of maintaining confidentiality so we dont want to have a mentee follow the head coach male coach around or retaining information and privacy that you cant have women in mens spaces because you know sexuality issues or nudity or whatever. We have had women meddling in basketball at the Olympics for five six Olympics and yet and we have some of the best basketball is in the world have come from Australia. She is currently on secondment to the Department of Health as Area of Operation Controller for the South-East Metro region in the COVID-19 response. So its one of the biggest cities. One of them is being done by the Australian Institute of Sport led by Kate Palmer CEO. So you know there are opportunities out there. This year, Australias most unique slashie will again join the SBS commentary team for the Tour De France when it kicks off on Saturday 26 June. You know we see the increase in pay for professional cricketers for example. Its where May speaking it you know over 120 events panels conferences et cetera in the last 18 months supports that is driving that message home that leadership can look different. Former international cyclist Dr Bridie O'Donnell has replaced wealthy businessman Alex Waislitz, who quit suddenly yesterday. Women and what they when they dug down into these. Understandably, for the month leading in, she was irritable, selfish and prone to wild mood swings, butthat was the requisite sacrifice, and standing atop the podium the reward. They would need to have 40 per cent women on the boards of these organisations acknowledging these were all volunteer positions. Bridie also managed and reached for Rush womens team a national road series cycling team in Australia in 2016. You fail a lot. And then what needed to come from that and there were nine recommendations that came from this report and the Victorian Government committed to implementing all nine of them. And I look back now and even though that was painful and it made me feel disappointed I realised that shaped an enormous amount of my persistence and that I was never in an environment where I was the best athlete ever and it took me until you know when I was 42 and I broke a world record to be the best in the world at something and thats a long time of trying and I do think that some people who peak early theres a sense there of complacency or perhaps perhaps even a lack of strategies on how to win. [00:25:13] And of course here in the States so many are owned by my wealthy people you know of the Womens Soccer League here in the States. [00:37:23] It doesnt all have to look the same way but no one is fully prepared for her job. You can imagine there were dozens or they said to me you know 100 women and men applied for this job. We had a team of champions and let me tell you we did not translate into a champion day. It was free to air on Channel 10 Channel 10 did an amazing job not only of broadcasting it but as you know the power of social media of retweeting great little clips of some of the really strong athletic performances of women batting and bowling etc. Head Coach - Rowing South Australian Sports Institute Aug 2022 - Present5 months Adelaide, South Australia, Australia Head of Rowing Xavier College Aug 2020 - Aug 20222 years 1 month Senior High. It was a problem all over the worldwhat youd almost term performance-enhancing eating disorders. How do they respect and talk about women in their privacy of their own home. When I was a rower, there were two weight categories for elite competition. For women, it was a legal version of doping, without the financial cost or the risk of being caught breaking the rules. How do they respect and talk about women in their privacy of their own home. Bridie O'Donnell to head Victoria's first office for Women in Sport from www.heraldsun.com.au. In November, 2017, Bridie was appointed the inaugural Head of the Office for Women in Sport and Recreation by the Victorian Government and in May, 2018 she published Life and Death a cycling memoir about her experiences as a professional cyclist in the international peloton. A typical training day would unfold in a series of slow, generally silent manoeuvres. The joy of having secured that first pro-contract was quickly dented by some fairly harsh realities, not the least of which was seeing the damage some cyclists were prepared to inflict on their bodies inthe pursuit of success. We know in many cases that can lead to violence. And interestingly the response by the AFL media was to remove the photo and then the Internet responded even more vociferously people in support of her and of womens sport by saying this is not the solution removing womens images from public spaces is not the way to silence critics. They were selected because of their admirable strength, their long limbs, and the extraordinary power required for a six or seven-minute effort. She was a champion rower and ironman triathlete before swapping to cycling in 2007, when the Australian Sports Commission was looking for sportswomen to compete as cycling time trialists. [00:39:37] And if youd like to find out more about Bridies work and the organization you could find a link in the show notes accompanying this episode at WiSP Sports dot com. About so many things I could have done better. They would have a budget over a four year cycle and they would then work alongside the Department of Sport and Rec to oversee policy. We venture into the book with an excerpt from Chapter 7, where ODonnell recounts what she saw when she headed to Europe to race for an Italian team in 2010. 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