International Women’s Day
In preparation for International’s Women’s Day, the AFC Wimbledon Foundation spent last week interviewing female participants of all ages at our weekly sessions. From Active Ageing, a session for 70+ year olds to socialise and take part in gentle exercise, to Football For All, a fun and inclusive session for young people on Saturday mornings; all were encouraged to get involved and reflect on who makes them proud to be a woman and which women inspire them most. They shared their answers with their peers and chose some keywords to best describe them. Prominent figures included famous celebrities, world-class sportswomen and also close friends and family members. Here are a selection of key facts about some of the women that were named:
Sam Kerr
Sam Kerr is an Australian international footballer who plays at club level for Chelsea F.C. Sam Kerr is officially the highest scoring Australian international in both male and female football and has played for clubs such as Chicago Red Stars, Perth Glory and Sydney FC. She is regarded as one of the best female footballers in the world, having scored over 200 goals in total whilst competing at a professional level. She grew up playing AFL (Australian Football League) and had a distinct dislike for ‘regular’ football, it wasn’t until later in her teens that she made the switch to football due to gender restrictions within AFL.
Queen Elizabeth II
Queen Elizabeth was born in 1926 and is the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York. She became queen at the young age of 25 and oversaw major political changes at the time. She has been served by 14 Prime Ministers during her time as a queen and is the longest serving female head of state in history. She has two birthdays, an official one in June and her actual birth date in April. She is well known for enjoying horse racing and football, and is the only person in the UK who does not require a licence to drive! She has led by example her whole life which she has committed to serving others.
Emma Raducanu
Emma Raducanu was 19 when she rose to fame after becoming the first British woman to win a Grand Slam final since Virginia Wade in 1977. Born to a Romanian father and Chinese mother, she grew up playing golf, enjoying go-karting, and riding horses. Her tennis career began at the young age of 5 and she has excelled throughout all ages of competition. Emma ignored all the negative voices she encountered along the way telling her she wasn’t good enough and focused on turning her dream of becoming a Grand Slam Champion into reality. She is an inspiration for all women to keep working at what they love and to never give up.
Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama was the first lady of the US from 2009 to 2017 and became the first African-American first lady in history. She studied sociology and African American studies at university, and met Barack Obama whilst working as a summer associate in a law firm. Since then she has had a big impact in the community, such as founding a leadership training programme for young adults. As a first lady she was actively involved in several causes such as supporting military families and has been a source of inspiration for many women thanks to her passion and determination to make positive change in the world.
The Foundation is pleased to have many inspiring women on their staff team who are passionate about encouraging young women and girls to strive to fulfil their potential. Below we hear from Maddi Sweetman and Rhiannon Maher on the role the AFC Wimbledon Foundation has played for them.