Women-only events to return to State Championships
Last year's women-only event was a great success
The 2022 State Championships will feature four women-only events after the success of the women-only Marshall event last year.
The 2021 State Championships saw some of CFA’s women members compete in women-only events for the very first time.
While women have always been able to compete in championship events, the introduction of these women-only events allowed more women and girls to feel comfortable competing.
“In reality, it can be a bit tricky for some of the women to compete against the men in some of the events at Championships,” said Rob Waterson, President of Urban Competition Committee.
“By introducing the women-only events, we were able to ensure all women who wanted to compete felt comfortable doing so. Most brigades that compete have at least one woman in their team, but over the years the Championships have been predominantly male-dominated. We’re hoping by continuing the women-only events, we can encourage more women to take part.”
In 2022, the events will return and expand, with women-only categories in the hydrant race, Marshall one competitor, Marshall two competitors and Marshall two Y event.
“Quite a few different brigades approached us with the idea of women’s-only events, so we introduced it last year with great success and will bring them back for 2022.”
Samantha White is a member of Pakenham Fire Brigade, and last year competed in the women-only events at the State Championships.
She said it’s a fantastic initiative to encourage more women to get involved.
“Throughout juniors, there’s always been a large number of young women competing, but once you hit a senior level this tends to decline, due to the type and nature of the senior events. So these women's-only events are a fantastic option to have.”
“The women can still enjoy the sport they did throughout juniors, and this gives them a chance to compete against other women who are at a similar level.”
Samantha said she would encourage anyone who’s interested in taking part to get involved.
“I would encourage and highly recommend getting involved as much as possible. I’m very passionate about this sport, and whilst I love competing against the boys, I am thrilled at the opportunity to compete against the girls too.
"The women-only events enable all of us to still show off our skills in an environment where we are comfortable to compete and to have a bit more fun without the added pressure. All the girls are lovely, it’s a lot more relaxed and I just find it really fun.”
The State Championships will run in Mooroopna in March. To find out more or register, please click here.