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The Lionesses success in the Euros, the Red Roses’ triumph at the Six Nations and England’s ongoing efforts in the Women’s Ashes – it could be easy to think of the last 12 months as the peak of women’s sport.
But to many, it’s only the beginning.
‘I think what’s exciting for women’s sport is the limitless possibilities,’ says Stacey Copland.
The former boxer, who also had a successful period as a footballer, spoke to Metro at the premiere of Game On: The Unstoppable Rise of Women’s Sport.
The documentary, released on Netflix today, charts the recent surge of interest in women’s sport but also highlights the barriers still in place.
Stacey, who features in the film, said: ‘Women’s sport is in its embryonic stage really, especially if you look at some sports and the length of time it’s even been legal for us to participate in them.
‘The funding, the investment, the social stigma being broken down, the opportunities in media – all of this is in its infancy so the the room for potential growth and possibility is phenomenal.
Game On highlights the work done to reach this stage in women’s sport (Picture: Action Foto Sport/NurPhoto/Shutterstock)
A variety of sports – such as rugby – feature in the documentary (Picture: RFU/The RFU Collection/Getty Images)
‘I’ve been part of the journey of women’s sport since I was a little girl and to see where it’s come just in my lifetime is incredible. I do feel we’re at a point now that there’s no going back.
‘We thought we’ve hit milestones before but this is an actual momentum. There’s absolutely no turning back.’
Game On explores this recent growth in women’s sport and its wider impact on society.
The director, Sue Anstiss, confronts controversial issues that have hampered the progress of women’s sport in the past.
Key questions raised and answered in Game On
Why do we expect women and girls to play sport in revealing clothes when men can remain modestly covered?
Why has it taken so long to finally address the issue of women playing sport in whites?
Why do schoolgirls drop out of sport at twice the rate of boys?
Why does women’s sport still not have the funding and investment of men’s?
The documentary was inspired by Sue’s book Game On: The Unstoppable Rise of Women’s Sport.
She told Metro.co.uk: ‘I wrote the book a couple of years ago and it was Jack Thompkins who pushed me and suggested making it in a film form.
‘The book has 86,000 words and the idea of condensing that into an hour long documentary did seem scary.
‘I hope what we’ve created can be seen as a celebration of women’s sport. It raises the disparities we face and the challenges still out there but, overall, it’s a very joyful and positive piece.
‘I want women and girls to go out and know they can do anything in sport.’
Sue Anstiss (left) and Tanni Grey-Thompson at the premiere of Netflix’s Game On – The Unstoppable Rise in Women’s Sport at Everyman Broadgate in London (Picture: PA)
Stacey Copeland took to the red carpet alongside fellow legends from within women’s sport (Picture: PA)
As well as Sue and Stacey, it features the likes of Denise Lewis, Tanni Grey-Thompson, Kelly Smith, Pamela Cookey, Laura Woods, Ugo Monye and Clare Balding.
A large portion of Game On charts the journey of the Red Roses player Poppy Cleall and the backdrop of the Women’s World Cup in 2022.
Sue continued: ‘Women’s rugby, perhaps more than any other sport, challenges society’s views of what is typically feminine. I do a lot of work in the area so it was important to me to highlight that.
‘We haven’t turned a corner in women’s’ sport but we are so much better than we were and we can see that in the sold-out stadiums and viewing figures.
‘If you look at the stats from the Women’s Sport Trust, there’s so many people coming to watch the women’s game despite never watching football before.
The documentary is released on Netflix today (Picture: Game On)
‘That visibility is so important moving forward. But for me it’s also about seeing more women’s leadership in sport and getting women in the room for making future decisions.’
Sue and Stacey, and the others in Game On, are part of this generation of trailblazers – forging an exciting path into the future of women’s sport.
But they both stress the importance of bringing to light stories of those who came before.
Stacey does several speeches in schools to tell her story and, in turn, cause a ‘ripple effect’ of inspiration.
She added: ‘Sport is one of the most important things in the entire planet for bringing about positive change and when it comes to gender it’s clearly a massive factor.
‘The area in which we make progress in women’s sport manifest in the rest of society.
‘That’s why documentaries like this are really important in telling that wider story.
‘Every generation has to fight a battle to make things better for the next generation. We stand on the shoulders of those who comes before us.
‘Change happens because people make it happen.’
Game On was co-directed and co-produced by Sue Anstiss, the founder of Fearless Women, co-founder of the Women’s Sport Collective and a founding trustee of the Women’s Sport Trust.
The film is co-directed and co-produced with Jack Tompkins from Ben&Jack Studio.
Game on is released on Netflix today, for more details click here.
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‘Women’s sport is in it’s embryonic stage, especially if you look at some sports and the length of time it’s even been legal for us to participate in them.’