Softball Canada launched its first ever female coach and umpire bursary program. The program is intended to aid in the recruitment, retention, and promotion of female coaches and umpires across Canada.
As part of its growing commitment to gender equity, and with thanks to targeted funding from Sport Canada, Softball Canada will be supporting initiatives that will advance the development, knowledge, and expertise of existing and aspiring female coaches and umpires.
The grant program opened 10 November, and Softball Canada will be accepting rolling applications until the program end date of 21 March 2021. The program will provide financial assistance to individuals, clubs, and/or Provincial/Territorial associations to direct towards initiatives that will advance the development of female coaches and/or umpires. This grant opportunity will focus on:
- Female umpire development
- Female coach development
- Removing financial barriers to accessing programming
- Increasing the number of female role models in Softball across Canada
Six of the 10 Tokyo 2020 Olympic Softball umpires assigned by the WBSC are female, including two Canadians, Geneviève Gaudreau and Frances Billingsley.
