Safe Spaces And Shared Experiences
Kidst Biruck Woldegiorgis, Sweden
We have teamed up with the adidas Breaking Barriers Project to share the inspiring stories of 14 Champions across Europe as they advocate for women and girls in sport within their local communities. The second instalment of this series showcases eight Champions from Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the UK who are advocating for the next generation of women in sport. Kidst Woldegiorgis is an adidas Breaking Barriers Champion and an activity leader with En Frisk Generation in Stockholm, Sweden.
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My name is Kidst Biruck Woldegiorgis and I am based in Stockholm, Sweden. I started working in 2021 with Right By Me and at the beginning of 2022 with En Frisk Generation as a coach and an activity leader. I am also a representative for a women's council project at Right By Me. The women’s council project is a two year project where the goal is to bring at least 200 girls aged 14-24 into sports. The project is called “hälsa på tjejers villkor” which translates to “health, on girls’ terms”.
There are six girls including me who work together with questions like “why do girls quit sports?” and “what do we do to get them back and to help them stay in sport?”. We try to identify and solve the problems that the girls face by interacting directly with them. We ask them what the challenges are from their point of view, what activities they would like to play, and we review and get feedback after an activity. We also interact with other non-profit organisations and help them to get in touch with the girls.
What has your sports journey been like up until now?
Growing up I played all kinds of sports, from football to volleyball and running. My family was very supportive of me playing sports, and would always ask me the reason when I quit playing a sport. For example, I stopped playing football for a time because of insecurities that I needed to be more feminine and because I felt too old to play.
But it was mostly my own passion that kept me pushing. I got into coaching when I started working for En Frisk Generation and Right By Me during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. When COVID hit, I stopped playing all the sports I used to play, with the exception of running, where I had just become a Junior Leader for the nonprofit organisation called Löparakedemin. I started training with them as a 14 year old and when I turned 17 I had the chance to become a leader.
Because I stopped playing, I spent most of my time at home where I became depressed until a friend invited me to a leadership session about women’s empowerment in summer 2020 for Right by Me (it was called Right to Play at the time). I started attending their leadership programmes and took part in all of their activities, which helped me both physically and mentally during the pandemic. It increased my self-confidence and I started to feel better about myself. From here, I became an activity leader at Right By Me, which put me in touch with En Frisk Generation where I am an adidas Breaking Barriers Champion.
I have played multiple sports throughout my life, but there have been times where I completely stopped because of challenges and injuries that I faced. One major challenge was in my football journey. Football has always been my favourite sport, but there were times that I was unable to play because of insecurities about needing to be more feminine or feeling too old to play. But every time I quit playing, I kept coming back to football because it is my passion.
Why did you start working in your community? Why are you motivated to do the work that you do? Why do you think your work with girls is important?
As someone who has been through challenges myself, I feel like I have a responsibility to help girls in my community get involved with sport by creating an inclusive and safe space for them to pursue their goals. This is important because there are so many women and girls that are struggling in their sports journey like I did, but most of them never come back to play. They need someone to support them and to show them that sport is for everyone. It is not often we see girls playing football on the pitch by themselves.
What did you try to capture with your photos? Was there a deeper meaning to the photos? What do these images mean to you as a Champion of the adidas Breaking Barriers Project?
The photos were taken at our adidas Breaking Barriers Champions camp and also during my coaching sessions. In the camp photos, there are girls between the ages of 14-16 from low socioeconomic areas. These girls have less opportunities to get involved with sport, and the purpose of the camp is to help them pursue their potential on and off the pitch. Because we promote diversity and inclusion at adidas Breaking Barriers, there are people from everywhere with different cultures, different skin colours, and different backgrounds in our sessions.
I tried to capture the inclusion and the diversity that we are working towards while showing how happy everyone was playing sports. As an adidas Breaking Barriers Champion, it means the world to see so many girls come and play with us. It shows that we are working towards our mission by reaching those who are in need as some of them may not have had the opportunity to play sports before.
What is your favourite photograph? Why?
My favourite photograph is the one where the girls are “speed dating.” The girls were seeing each other for the first time and we thought it was a good idea to have them get to know each other. They got along very quickly and became friends which made me really happy. It shows how sport can help us make friends.
Why is sport important for your community? Why is it important to you?
Sport is important in my community because there are so many women and girls that have dropped out due to lack of opportunity and lack of encouragement from society. As I have previously experienced this, I feel a responsibility to help make a change now that I have the platform to do so, because everyone deserves the opportunity to play sport.
What role does sport play in your community and your culture or society? What are some of the prevailing challenges for women and girls in your communities?
Sport plays a big role in my community. There are many societal stereotypes that hold women back from pursuing their potential. As I work with young girls from different backgrounds, I can easily see who plays sports and who does not. The girls that do some type of physical activity are mostly sociable and more competitive and confident. Girls that have just moved to Sweden, especially from countries with different cultural norms, or those who have been through tough times, are hard to convince to come play. However, once they start playing, they really get motivated and many go on to become leaders. All it takes is motivation and encouragement from our side to show them that we are there for them.
What are the opportunities for women and girls to play sports in your community and in Sweden?
There are different sport clubs and organisations in Sweden, but unfortunately many do not reach out to the community to encourage girls to join the programmes. Many girls drop out of sport when they hit puberty while others do not even know organisations for girls in sport exist. Many girls who stopped playing sports have said it was because of the lack of opportunities and safe spaces to play.
What impact has the adidas Breaking Barriers Project had on your journey as a leader and change-maker in women’s sport? What are your ambitions for the future?
The adidas Breaking Barriers Project came at the perfect time in my journey. It was when I just started coaching with En Frisk Generation and did not have as much experience being a leader. Through this Project, I got to build my leadership skills and become stronger and more confident in myself.
We have had many virtual educational and activity sessions. In the summer of 2022, we visited the adidas headquarters in Germany and shared our experiences. That was beyond helpful for my journey. I had the chance to meet many mentors and other leaders who shared their journey. I even had a deep talk with one of the co-founders of the Breaking Barriers Project. She told me about her 30-year sport story and how much she sacrificed for sport. It was so insightful and it gave me another perspective. I learned so many challenges that people face that I would not have known otherwise. Now everytime I meet a new participant I try my best to make them feel they are welcome and try to understand them, because it is not always as easy as we think it is.
My ambition for the future is to inspire other girls who are having a hard time breaking into sport and, eventually, to help make sport more inclusive for women.
What do you think the future looks like for sport in your community and Sweden? What do you want to change? How would you improve gender equality?
It is hard for me to predict the future for sport in Sweden because I do not think we are doing enough as a society to make a difference. Many of the challenges that girls face are not even acknowledged by society. But in our community, I would say there are improvements as many of the girls were willing to play sports after the adidas Breaking Barriers Project camp.
