Despite efforts: Nine out of ten in equestrian sports are women

2021-11-07T19:41:52.397Z

Just over ten years ago, the Swedish Equestrian Federation started a work to put guys in equestrian sports in focus. This resulted in, among other things, the report "I am a normal guy as well". But despite the investment, the boys are still few in the riding schools. - Unfortunately, the figures look basically the same, in some years there are even fewer. Often these projects stop at the fact that they are just projects - they do not really get a foothold. There we need to find better ways, says Hanna Danewid at the Swedish Equestrian Federation.

Horse riding is one of Sweden's biggest youth sports.

But not among men and boys.

Last year, 92 percent of all members of Swedish equestrian associations were women, according to figures from the Swedish Equestrian Federation.

And among young people between the ages of seven and twenty, the difference is even greater: there are just over six percent boys.

This makes equestrian sports one of the most gender-segregated sports in Sweden.

- The guys we talk to who are in equestrian sports rarely experience it as a problem.

It's more about the image from the outside.

And there we also have research that shows that it is easier to attract girls to male sports than the other way around.

That stamp that equestrian sports has taken on, that it would be a girls' sport, we have to wash it off.

Hanna Danewid believes that more guys are needed to ride to make the sport more equal.

One reason is the requirement from the Swedish Sports Confederation to have at least 40 percent of each gender on the association's boards.

- And the boards must at the same time reflect the members, so there we have a huge challenge, she says.

"Riding should include everyone"

But at the same time, the Swedish Equestrian Federation has no specific investment in getting more guys into the sport right now, but focuses on a broader perspective.

- Riding should include everyone regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation, social, ethnic and cultural background.

This is something we have worked hard on in recent years, both in terms of communication and in our educations, says Danewid.

Can the Equestrian Federation do more to get guys to ride?

- Yes, we completely agree that we must be able to.

But we think we should work towards a wider target group so that everyone will feel welcome in the equestrian sport.

Javascript is disabled

Javascript must be turned on to play video

The browser is not supported

SVT does not support playback in your browser.

We therefore recommend that you switch to another browser.

Despite efforts: Nine out of ten in equestrian sports are women

"Riding should include everyone"

Javascript is disabled

The browser is not supported

You may like

Trends 24h

Latest