Yang Yang proud to push women's cause

Olympic great says motherhood makes work extra special

Chinese Olympic great Yang Yang says being a mom has enriched her role as a campaigner for gender equality in sports.

The 45-year-old mother-of-two worked with the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Women in Sports Commission after retiring from short-track speed skating.

With 34 world titles to her name, she also founded the Champion Foundation in 2009 to promote sports in schools and communities, as well as opening her own skating academy in Shanghai.

"So many parents have told me how sports helped their girls become strong and confident at school, how sports teach kids about responsibility and team spirit, positive thinking, etc. They enjoy skating, they enjoy sports, and that makes my work so much more meaningful," said Yang, who continues to represent the IOC as vice-president of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

"I really appreciate the knowledge I have gained from sports; I am very lucky that I can support my kids in sports, especially as there are not many activities in school. But at the same time, I am also thinking about how I can support other moms who might also need the knowledge to support their kids."

Yang became China's first Winter Olympic champion in 2002, when she won two gold medals and a silver at the Salt Lake City Games.

Four years later in Turin, she became the first female Chinese athlete to carry the national flag at an Olympics opening ceremony, and since hanging up her skates has continued to do her country proud.

After being elected as an IOC member in 2010, she said she turned to compatriot He Zhenliang－a former IOC member and vice-president－for inspiration in her new role.

"He told me a story from the Doha Asian Games, which was the first time some Middle East countries had sent female athletes to compete, and it was a really big breakthrough for their society," recalled Yang.

"As an athlete, I was only focused on competing and it was the first time that I looked at sports from a different angle. Since then, I have been devoting a lot of my time helping to improve women's roles and opportunities in sports."

In two four-year terms as an IOC member, Yang witnessed and facilitated the increasing participation of female athletes at the Summer, Winter and Youth Olympics.

According to the IOC, female participation will reach a record high of 48.8 percent in Tokyo next summer, more than double that of Los Angeles in 1984. Beijing 2022 will also see an increase in women's and mixed events to reach a record 45.44 percent female representation at a Winter Games. That's up by nearly 5 percent compared with Pyeongchang 2018, when there was almost double the amount of women competing than at the 1984 Sarajevo Games.

"Because more women are competing in sports, many very talented female athletes have become heroes and stars which in turn inspires more women and girls to play sports," said Yang.

Xinhua