National Irish Language broadcaster TG4 is delighted to announce that it has come on board as a Media Partner for the 20x20 Women in Sport initiative.
The announcement was made live, during the broadcasting of the All Ireland Ladies Football Club Finals on TG4 this weekend.
TG4 are recognised as having supported women in sport for many years and have pioneered the broadcasting and helped increase the profile of womens sport since they were set up in 1996. This new media partnership will see TG4 consolidate this development, while increasing the visibility and coverage of womens sport at all levels of the stations output.
The 20×20 initiative is about creating a cultural shift in the perception of girls and women in sport. It seeks to change the subliminal bias in the Irish psyche that exists around girls and boys, or women and men, when it comes to sport.
Welcoming the new development, TG4 Head of Sport, Rónán Ó Coisdealbha says:
“TG4 are delighted to lend their support to the 20x20 campaign which is a fantastic initiative, presented by The Federation of Irish Sport. Our partnership with 20x20 will only serve to continue our committment to women in sport in an exciting sporting landscape. Our successful collaboration with the LGFA, as well as our coverage of women in other sports such as camogie, basketball, tennis, badminton. swimming, athletics and more, has been an integral part of our development policy. This year alone TG4 broadcast around 90 hours of womens’ sport reaching almost 1.2 million people, including live events, highlights, news reports and documentaries. We look forward to building on this strong foundation and to increase visibility and awareness across a range of sports on TG4 in the coming years.”.
Mary O’Connor, CEO Federation of Irish Sport has welcomed the announcement that TG4 are set to become a media partner for the 20x20 campaign.
“The Federation of Irish Sport are delighted to have the support of TG4 for the duration of the 20x20 campaign. TG4 have been dedicated supporters and promoters of sport in Ireland and have been particularly positive in their coverage of women’s sport. We are delighted to have them on board with 20x20 in what we know will be a hugely positive addition to the campaign. By joining us in helping to increase the visibility of women in sport over the next two years they are furthering their commitment to promoting women in sport which can only serve to strengthen the campaign moving forward”.
The 20x20 initiative has been devised by creative agency, Along Came a Spider. Speaking on the TG4 announcement Managing Director, Sarah Colgan says:
“TG4 are already known for giving a great platform to women’s sport and are very strong addition as an Official Media Partner of 20x20. As a broadcaster, the increased visibility they will being to female athletes, teams and competitions is hugely valuable and we are looking forward to working together over the lifetime of the initiative.”
The name of the initiative is shorthand for 20% by 2020, these are the targets that have been set by the campaign:
20% more media coverage of women in sport by the end of 2020
20% more female participation whether at player, coach, referee or administration level by the end of 2020
20% more attendance at women’s games and events by the end of 2020
20x20 isn’t a ‘women for women’ initiative, it’s ‘all of society for all of society’. The campaign utilises the tagline ‘If she can’t see it, She can’t be it’, ‘Mar a fheictear a dhéantar’.
For more information on the campaign go to: www.20x20.ie
Or, contact Sinead Conroy at [email protected]
TG4 Presenter Gráinne McElwain is joined by Mary O'Connor, CEO Federation of Irish Sport, left, at the announcement of TG4 becoming a media partner with the 20x20 Women in Sport campaign at Parnell Park in Dublin. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile *** NO REPRODUCTION FEE ***
