Set the Standard featured inspirational business and sporting women who are all making waves in their respective fields.

The panel was made up of Raelene Castle - CEO of Rugby Australia, Ellie Cole - Australian Paralympian, Sam Mostyn – Board Member for the Sydney Swans, Ann Odong – Creator of The Women’s Game and current Campaign Coordinator for the FFA 2023 World Cup Bid and Facilitator of the evening, Sarah Groubes – current Sub-Editor for The Women’s Game.

Over the course of the evening, each of the panellists shared their personal stories of how they came to be in their current position and gave advice to those wanting to follow in their footsteps.

They discussed how to overcome the roadblocks that women can face in both business and sport and all followed the same theme, of how important it is to “back yourself".

Raelene Castle explained that there was a tendency for women to see a job advert and avoid applying if they didn’t meet all criteria, whereas men would just apply.

Castle continued saying having faith in your ability and knowledge to pick things up along the way is what will open up more doors for women in male dominated upper-management roles. 

Ellie Cole shared her personal journey, of her battle with cancer as a child where she ultimately lost her leg. 

Cole recounted the moment she decided she was going to go all the way in the pool, and it was due to her coach telling her, she wasn’t as ready as her able-bodied teammates, she was too slow and wasn’t able to have her flipper altered like the rest of her squad.

This set off a fire in her and is a six-time Paralympic gold medalist.

 

A post shared by Ellie Cole (@elliecoleswim) on

Ann Odong gave some insight into where her passion for sport came from, saying sport for her was an entry into Australian society. 

“It was the language I first learnt in Australia," she said.

Ann discussed the power of social media and our ability to now “set the agenda” and how crucial social media is in promoting women in sport and starting the conversation. 

Odong highlighted the important role sport plays in bringing together people from all walks of life.

Sam Mostyn is hoping to see more women in senior management making key decisions in the sporting space.

She is a believer that inclusion at all levels, in the game and in the business is key to growing and developing the sport.

When asked “What can we do to support women in sport?” the panellists had this to say.

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