The election of Kirsty Coventry as president of the IOC was instigated by former CANOC President Brian Lewis’ challenge to the IOC in 2018 to elect a woman president, according to the current CANOC President.

“Coventry’s ascent to the presidency of the IOC is very much a response to CANOC’s Brian Lewis’ appeal at the forum, Olympism In Action, held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, during the Youth Olympics in 2018,” CANOC President Keith Joseph wrote.

“In a discussion on women in sport, Lewis challenged the IOC and the entire Olympic Movement to elect a woman as the organisation’s next president. To Brian’s credit, it has been realised.”

In a recent interview with the Trinidad Express, Brian Lewis said: "When I made the statement that the next president should be a female, the room gasped — as if I had said something I ought not to have said. 

"It is great for the IOC and its history that for the first time ever, a female has been elected to this role. It has taken far too long."

Coventry will also be the first IOC president from the Global South.

"IOC needs change, not continuity"

In an editorial in the Trinidad & Tobago Guardian, Lewis said: "While the election of Coventry can be seen as a significant win for inclusivity and progress, she will have to show that she can rise to the occasion and demonstrate the necessary competence, skill set and leadership.

"The IOC is at a crossroads. Regardless of the perception that she represents continuity and exchange, rather than the change that the IOC badly needs at this time."

Brian Lewis is on the Advisory Board of Host City, where he has helped to shape the conference agenda as part of a diverse group of industry-wide stakeholders.

What are young people focused on and why does the sports industry need to attract them?

David Grevemberg CBE, Chief Innovation and Partnerships Officer, Centre for Sports and Human Rights: “What we do in sport is sell the dream of the lifestyle of the athlete. What we fail to do, and what is most needed, is sell life purpose.

“As for how we launch this into the future and are able to attract the hearts and minds of young people: my kids have taught me so much about identity, and their sense of what they want to belong to physically, mentally, spiritually and virtually. Their fluidity in terms of their knowledge, scale and skills and experiences at 17-18 years is much wider – and they are much more likely to offer sincerity and authenticity.”

Mayi Cruz Blanco, MD, Sports Practice & Partnerships, Adecco Group: “One issue that is ringing out is public trust. This is influencing the way sponsorship is done. The human rights movement, women in sports and geopolitics are shaping sports like never before.

“By 2025, 50% of the world population will need upskilling, in terms of data and digital literacy. We need to bring sports organisations to that future.”

Bill Powell, MD, Black Lab Sports: “There is a ‘give first’ mentality of Gen Z. A lot of sport is totally underestimating the change in how people from 8-25 are going to consume sport. They might look at their favourite team for only 15 minutes. You need to give first and get their attention.”

What can athletes bring to the professional sphere?

Mayi Cruz Blanco, MD, Sports Practice & Partnerships, Adecco Group: “The sports industry needs to think more about how they bring athletes back. Athletes are positive disruptors. They can bring a business mindset and creative thinking.”

Jeroen Straathof, Tournament Director, European Para Championships 2023: “We use the voice of athletes in the perspective of our event; we let athletes to tell their story. We advise all organisations to get the voice of athletes in their company. We need more athletes on boards.”

Rowena Samarasinhe, Founder, GENsport: “Now athletes have a much stronger voice through social media. It’s taken until now to put athletes first, or at least up there.”

What are the considerations for athletes planning a career in sports?

Jeroen Staathof, Tournament Director, European Para Championships 2023 and former athletes commission chair: “Athletes need to be aware that they are people who can do things really well – but out there are also guitar players who play really well, so you’re not special!”

Xu Lijia OLY, Olympic gold medallist: “When I was training in the 90s I didn’t know English. I was like a frog in a well! Learning English helped me a lot, to access the most advanced information and knowledge. And it helped my second career in sports media. By mastering both Chinese and English I could quickly switch between the two. A multinational experience really helped me to survive well in the western world – and perhaps people here can learn more about China.

“There are lots of courses, online and offline, from IOC other organisations, to help us to experience this difficult transition. As athletes we have many transferable skills – time management with a clear role.”

“But I did feel quite low when I realised I couldn’t compete any more, and I wouldn’t feel as high again.”

David Grevemberg CBE, Chief Innovation and Partnerships Officer, Centre for Sports and Human Rights: “You need a trauma informed approach. It’s traumatic to reidentify our life purpose.”

Why is it important to have a diverse workforce?

Bill Powell, MD, Black Lab Sports: “Some of the most culturally diverse teams are the ones grabbing onto exponentially growing technology.”

Mayi Cruz Blanco, MD, Sports Practice & Partnerships, Adecco Group: “Diversity is not just about numbers. It’s about making a huge difference in the world. Candidates are declining organisations that are not inclusive enough. You need to bring different groups into the sports industry.”

Rowena Samarasinhe, Founder, GENsport: “We are a global industry, but if you look at federations it’s very much a western ideology. We need to represent the entire world. Its 60 years since Martin Luther King gave his ‘I have a dream’ speech, but we’re in the same situation now, still talking about diversity.

“We have also had a spate of female leaders getting vilified. We’ve got to ride that wave, but get through it. A big part is supporting that next generation and helping them to be our future leaders.”

[Source: UCI] The 190th Congress of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) – an electoral Congress - was held on 24^th September in Leuven (Belgium) during the 2021 UCI Road World Championships that are taking place in Flanders and mark the centenary of the event. The UCI Congress brought together representatives of 95 of the UCI’s member National Federations.

President of the International Federation since the UCI Congress held in Bergen (Norway) in September 2017, David Lappartient was re-elected in Leuven for a second term of four years at the head of the institution. As the only candidate, he was re-elected by acclamation.

The UCI Congress also had the responsibility of holding the election for members of the new UCI Management Committee, who will serve on the Federation’s executive for the next four years. The elected members are (by Confederation then in alphabetical order where relevant):

For the Confédération Africaine de Cyclisme (CAC)

Mr Mohammed BEN EL MAHI (MAR)

For the Asian Cycling Confederation (ACC)

Mr Amarjit Singh Gill DARSHAN SINGH (MAS)

For the Union Européenne de Cyclisme (UEC)

Mr Michel CALLOT (FRA)

Mr Rocco CATTANEO (SUI)

Ms Daniela ISETTI (ITA)

Mr Henrik Jess JENSEN (DEN)

Ms Agata LANG (POL)

Mr José Luis LÓPEZ CERRÓN (ESP)

Mr Igor Viktorovich MAKAROV (RUS)

For the Confederación Panamericana de Ciclismo (COPACI)

Ms Sonia Gregoria RAMOS ACUÑA (BOL)

For the Oceania Cycling Confederation (OCC)

Ms Anne GRIPPER (AUS)

These 11 new members join the Management Committee alongside the Presidents of the five Continental Confederations – elected at the beginning of this year – as well as the President of the UCI Athletes’ Commission, who all automatically serve on the UCI’s Management Committee. They are listed below (in alphabetical order):

Mr Osama Ahmed Abdullah AL SHAFAR (UAE), ACC President

Dr Mohamed Wagih AZZAM (EGY), CAC President

Mr Enrico DELLA CASA (ITA), UEC President

Mr Tony MITCHELL (NZL), OCC President

Ms Katerina NASH (CZE), President of the UCI Athletes’ Commission*

Mr José Manuel PELAEZ (CUB), COPACI President.

* until the election of the new President of the Commission by its members between November and December 2021.

Championship hosts revealed

At a ceremony organised during Congress, participants discovered the different UCI World Championships for the 2022-2027 period attributed earlier in the week by the UCI Management Committee. In total, the names of host cities for nine UCI World Championships – for a total of seven countries and five disciplines – were revealed:

2022 UCI Indoor Cycling World Championships: Ghent (Belgium)

2022 UCI Mountain Bike Eliminator World Championships: Barcelona (Spain)

2022 UCI Mountain Bike Marathon Masters World Championships: Madonna di Campiglio (Italy)

2024 and 2025 UCI Masters Track Cycling World Championships: Roubaix (France)

2025 UCI Road World Championships: Kigali (Rwanda)

2026 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships: Hulst (the Netherlands)

2026 UCI Gran Fondo World Championships: Victoriaville (Canada)

2027 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships: Ostend (Belgium).

The announcement that the 2025 UCI Road World Championships are awarded to the capital of Rwanda means this will be a first appearance in Africa of the UCI’s annual flagship event. It is a decisive step in the organisation of this historic event which featured among the major objectives of the UCI’s Agenda 2022.

Four new members joined the UCI at its 2021 Congress, which approved the affiliation of the National Federations of South Sudan, the Solomon Islands, Equatorial Guinea and the Vatican (the UCI is the only International Federation to have the Vatican among its members). The objective of reaching 200 affiliated National Federations by the end of David Lappartient’s first term as President of the UCI, in line with the Federation’s Agenda 2022, has been reached and exceeded. There are now 201 affiliated National Federations.

The Congress approved the 2020 UCI Annual Report, which contains the audited consolidated financial statements for the UCI and the UCI World Cycling Centre (WCC). At more than 40 million Swiss francs, the reserves of the two entities at the end of 2020 remained almost unchanged compared to 2019, despite the Covid-19 pandemic. The Congress also approved the UCI’s 2022 budget as well as an updated forecast for 2021. The UCI’s projected reserves over the new Olympic cycle were also presented to Congress. They show prudent growth in reserves through to 2024 and at the same time increasing funds available for the development of cycling worldwide.

The Congress also approved a modification to the UCI Constitution to increase the number of Vice-Presidents from three to four, and to ensure they include at least one representative of each gender.

Participants at Congress were informed of the delivery status of all objectives in the UCI’s Agenda 2022. Much progress has been made: as of the end of September 2021, close to 80% of the 300 objectives communicated have been totally or almost entirely achieved.

Congress participants welcomed the award of the UCI Bike City label to the city of Sakarya (Turkey) by the Federation’s Management Committee earlier in the week. This label is in recognition of the quality of each recipient’s strategy for developing and promoting everyday use of the bike, and of their commitment to organising events on the UCI International Calendar. Sakarya joins the 14 cities and regions that already hold the UCI Bike City label.

Sakarya hosted the 2020 UCI Mountain Bike Marathon World Championships, a round of the 2021 UCI Mountain Bike Marathon series, as well as a round of the 2020 UCI BMX Supercross World Cup. The Sakarya Metropolitan Municipality has developed a 10-year action plan and is investing heavily to become a city that not only hosts championships, but also ensures bikes are used more actively in transportation, encourages people to lead healthier lives, and promotes a cycling culture. Dedicating approximately 15% of the total annual budget to cycling, it has developed multiple cycling infrastructures and programmes, including the multi-disciplinary Cycling Valley, protected bicycle paths, traffic parks, road safety programmes, children’s cycling programmes and various events for the public.

Finally, the Congress awarded the UCI Merit, a distinction rewarding those who have made a remarkable contribution to cycling, to:

Mr Fazli Ahmad Fazli (AFG), President of the Afghanistan Cycling Federation, for his courageous commitment to the development of cycling, notably women’s cycling, in a country where fighting for this cause is a risk.

Mr Greg LeMond (USA), double road UCI World Champion and triple winner of the Tour de France, for his exceptional contribution to the legend of international cycling.

Mr Philippe Leuba (SUI), Head of the Department of Economy, Innovation and Sport in the canton of Vaud - which houses the UCI headquarters and UCI World Cycling Centre (WCC) - for his efforts alongside the UCI to welcome to the UCI WCC, people threatened in Afghanistan due to their passion for cycling with no barriers.

Mr Tom Van Damme (BEL), member of the UCI Management Committee and President of the Royal Belgian Cycling League (RLVB) for his constant commitment to the development of cycling at international level.

In addition, Mr Renato Di Rocco (ITA), Vice-President of the UCI, and Mr Artur Lopes (POR), member of its Management Committee, who both leave their positions, become respectively UCI Honorary Vice-President and Honorary Member of the UCI Management Committee. Moreover, at its extraordinary session after the Congress, the Management Committee decided to renew Mr Tom Van Damme’s mandate as President of the Professional Cycling Council.

The UCI President David Lappartient declared: “I would like to whole-heartedly thank the National Federations affiliated to the UCI for renewing their confidence in me by electing me for a second term of four years. I look forward to continuing my work at the head of world cycling. After achieving a large majority of the objectives in the Agenda 2022, I now mean to work with our members to establish an Agenda 2030 whose goals will shape the future of cycling in the medium and long term.

I would also like to extend a welcome to the new members of our Management Committee that now includes considerably more women, with Ms Daniela Isetti, Ms Agata Lang, Ms Sonia Gregoria Ramos Acuña and Ms Anne Gripper. I am convinced that we will work together effectively for the development and promotion of cycling.

“I welcome the attribution of the 2025 UCI Road World Championships to Kigali, in Rwanda. Staging our biggest annual event in Africa was one of our dreams. Today, this is nearer to becoming a reality. I sincerely thank Tangier and Morocco for their bid of very high quality. The UCI encourages the country to submit new bids for future events. Given its love of cycling and its commitment for the development of our sport, it deserves to welcome major UCI events.”

More equal gender representation

Meeting for an extraordinary session after the Congress of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) organised during the 2021 UCI Road World Championships in Flanders (Belgium), the newly elected Management Committee carried out the election of the Federation’s Vice-Presidents for the next four years. In line with a modification to the UCI Constitution approved earlier in the day by its Congress, the UCI now counts at least one Vice-President of each gender, for a total of four Vice-Presidents (compared with three previously). The Vice-Presidents elected are:

Dr Mohamed Wagih AZZAM (EGY), President of the Confédération Africaine de Cyclisme (CAC)

Ms Katerina NASH (CZE), President of the UCI Athletes’ Commission

Mr Enrico DELLA CASA (ITA), President of the Union Européenne de Cyclisme (UEC)

Mr Osama Ahmed Abdullah AL SHAFAR (UAE), President of the Asian Cycling Confederation (ACC).

Their term begins immediately and will finish after the 2025 UCI Congress.

The extraordinary meeting of the Management Committee also decided to bring in a co-opted member to the UCI Management Committee: Ms Yuan YUAN (CHN), Vice-President of the Asian Cycling Confederation and Deputy Secretary General of the Chinese Cycling Association.

It also confirmed Ms Amina Lanaya in the position of Director General of the UCI.

The President of the UCI David Lappartient, re-elected during the Congress, declared: “I would like to congratulate my four Vice-Presidents for their election, and I look forward to working with them over the next four years.

“With the election of Ms Yuan Yuan to the UCI Management Committee, it now has six women members out of 18, as opposed to just one after the previous elections. This is a major step towards more equal gender representation in the governance of cycling, which is one of the UCI’s priorities.

“I would also like to thank Mr Renato Di Rocco, who has been one of my Vice-Presidents since 2017 until this week, after occupying this role for the first time between 2009 and 2013. His support, his experience and his extensive knowledge of cycling have been precious throughout the many years he has served our sport.”

[Source: AISTS] Each year, the International Academy of Sports Science and Technology (AISTS), offers a Future Female Leader in Sport scholarship, open globally to women pursuing a career in the sports industry, or looking to advance their careers. The deadline for the next scholarship is 1 February 2020.

The AISTS is home to the World’s No.1 Sports Management Master Program (Eduniversal rankings) and located in the heart of the Olympic Capital, Lausanne, Switzerland.

The Academy was co-founded by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the degree is signed by three leading Swiss universities; EPFL, University of Lausanne, and University of Geneva.

Each year the scholarship – which has a value of CHF 14,950 (EUR 13,817, 50% of the tuition fee) – is available to a promising female leader.

“It’s no secret that there is a lack of women in leadership positions within the sports industry,” says Claude Stricker, AISTS executive director. “We’re proud to offer the AISTS Future Female Leader in Sport Scholarship, to help address this imbalance and assist an inspiring woman in achieving her goals within the industry.”

The AISTS Future Female Leader in Sport Scholarship was established in 2011 by the June Canavan Foundation in honour of June Canavan, an AISTS alumni who tragically lost her life in a plane crash in 2009. 

Due to limited funding, 2013 was the last year the scholarship was offered by the June Canavan Foundation. However, the AISTS re-established the scholarship with the unchanged aim of rewarding a female applicant committed to ethical sport leadership. 

Previous recipients of the scholarship include Thayssa Plum from Brazil who currently works as senior media relations manager at FIFA

“It’s important that there are scholarship programs like the AISTS Future Female Leadership in Sport,” says Thayssa. “In my case, it’s pretty simple. It changed my life. Every girl has dreams, but not all of them have the same means. Reaching out to them, supporting their dream and making things possible is the push they need to succeed.”

Other recipients Rida Ahmed who currently works in Athlete Relations & Engagement at the International Olympic Committee.

“The AISTS Future Female Leader in Sport Scholarship was the reason I was able to make it here and learn so much  about the industry and make so many connections,” says Rida.”The scholarship has so much potential to help other who want to transition into the field and I look forward to seeing the journeys of future applicants. “

To apply for the scholarship or to find out more about the AISTS Master of Advanced Studies in Sports Administration and Technology please visit https://aists.org/education/masters-degree/about-the-degree/

At London 2012 Paralympics, Steven Hawking stated, “We are all different, there is no such thing as a standard or run-of-the-mill human being, but we all share the same human spirit”. What is important is that we all have the ability to create; to use this stage to show the world that regardless of difference, there is always something you can succeed at.

How is this relevant to Host City? I’m talking about the purple pound. This is the spend by disabled people and their families in the UK, which is a mind-blowing GBP 249 billion per year. To put this into perspective, the GDP of the entire New Zealand economy in 2017 was GBP 160 billion. The UK events sector is worth GBP 42.3 billion, so a failure to tap into this disability market is an opportunity missed.

Rick Hansen, a Canadian Paralympian said “my disability is that I cannot use my legs. My handicap is your negative perception of that disability, and thus of me”.

So, I’m here to change negative perceptions of me and my disability. My company helps your business tap into the purple pound by ensuring that you build environments in which people with different abilities can thrive, and by improving the appeal and accessibility of your products and services to customers with disabilities.

We advise how to make your events accessible; how to make your events appeal to the purple market; and finally, how to tap into the creativity of that group to help improve your events.

As a London 2012 Games Maker, I was part of the generation inspired. To paraphrase Stephen Hawking, I used my ability to create, to inspire difference. Let Enabling Abilities help inspire us purple people – and think how your business could expand if you tapped into this as yet untapped market.

This “lightning talk” was delivered at Host City 2018 in Glasgow in November 2018. Thomas Williams is speaking on the panel “Titanic Disasters and Herculean Feats” at Host City 2019 in Glasgow on 26-27 November

[Source: VisitScotland] Scotland is one of the world’s leading event destinations and this summer it will reaffirm its position as it shines a spotlight on women’s sport.

Over the next three months the country will play host to six European and international sporting events kicking off with the UEFA Women’s U19 European Championship in July and culminating in the biggest event in women’s golf, The 2019 Solheim Cup in September.

The country will also host the Women’s Eurohockey Championships II, the inaugural Women’s Tour of Scotland, The Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open and the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup T20 Global Qualifier during the summer months.

To mark the occasion, VisitScotland and its EventScotland team gathered players from each event to celebrate this special summer of women’s sport and showcase Scotland is leading the way in the development and promotion of world-class women’s sporting events.

Solheim Cup Team Europe Captain, Catriona Matthew, met with Scotland cricketer, Samantha Haggo, along with Katie Archibald, Women’s Tour of Scotland ambassador and Commonwealth, World and Olympic Cycling Champion; Becky Ward, Scotland’s Hockey Vice Captain and Scotland Under 19’s football player Michaela McAlonie to commemorate this occasion.

Talking about this unprecedented summer of women’s sport, Catriona Matthew, Solheim Cup Team Europe Captain said: “It is incredibly exciting that The 2019 Solheim Cup will be the culmination of a terrific year for women’s sport in Scotland, showcasing the very best of a range of sports across a number of events. There is no doubt that women’s sport is benefitting from an enhanced profile both domestically and globally and it is fitting that The Solheim Cup and golf plays a huge part of that in the country which gave the game to world. I hope the Scottish public turn out in force to support our world-class athletes, not just at Gleneagles in September but across all of our women’s sports events.”

VisitScotland’s Director of Events, Paul Bush OBE, said: “2019 is a big year for women’s sport with Scotland providing the perfect stage over the next three months for six key events on the international sporting calendar. As a world-leading events destination we have a proud history of supporting and championing women’s sporting events. From hosting the largest women’s annual golf event on the Ladies European Tour to supporting showcase events for national teams, we continue to shine a spotlight and build on the momentum shift behind women’s sport.

The Scottish summer of women’s sporting events are, in chronological order:

Football: UEFA Women's U19 European Championship - 16 – 28 July

In the aftermath of the FIFA Women’s World Cup, Scotland will be hosting UEFA’s flagship European Championship Youth Tournament, the Women’s Under 19 European Championship, which aims to expose talented youth footballers to elite level competition in preparation for stepping up to the senior stage to represent their country. Taking place across four professional football stadiums in Scotland - the grounds of St. Johnstone FC (Perth), Stirling Albion FC, Partick Thistle FC (Glasgow) and St. Mirren FC (Paisley) - Scotland will be joined by Belgium, England, France, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, and current holders Spain as they all compete for the trophy, which will be lifted by the winner on Sunday 28 July.

Michaela McAlonie said: “This has already been an exciting summer for Scottish women’s football, and will now culminate with the Women’s Under-19s Euros.

“Scotland has shown in the past that it can host world class events and this one will be no different.

“The players can’t wait to play in front of a passionate home crowd and hopefully the country gets behind us, like they did for the ‘A’ squad’s World Cup debut in France.

“Young girls now have female footballing role models and hopefully over the course of July we can continue to help inspire the next generation.”

For more information, including tickets, visit https://www.scottishfa.co.uk/scottish-fa/wu19s-european-championships/

Hockey: Women’s Eurohockey Championship II - 4 – 10 August

Held every two years, the Women’s Eurohockey Championship Division II will see eight nations compete to join the first division and rank amongst the best in Europe. Featuring 20 matches spread over seven days at the Glasgow National Hockey Centre, the iconic legacy venue of the 2014 Commonwealth Games, all eyes will be on team Scotland as they go up against Wales, Czech Republic, Italy, Poland, Ukraine, Austria and Turkey to gain promotion to the top tier and avoid relegation to the 3^rd league.  Scotland matches are due to take place at 17:00 Sunday 04 August, 18:00 Tuesday 06 August and 19:00 Wednesday 07 August ahead of a final on Saturday 10 August.

Becky Ward, Scotland Vice-Captain, said: “It’s such a big year for Scottish women’s sport and to have a massive women’s hockey tournament in Glasgow is amazing. The squad can’t wait to play at home and I hope there will be a great support cheering us on, as well as all the athletes across the other sports events in Scotland this summer. It’s really exciting to be part of it and the tournament will play a big part in promoting women’s sport in Scotland, and beyond.”

To find out more and get tickets, visit https://www.scottish-hockey.org.uk/womens-eurohockey-championship-ii/

Cycling: Women’s Tour of Scotland - 9 – 11 August

The Women’s Tour is a new and permanent fixture on the professional cycling calendar. This year’s inaugural the three-day, three stage 350km Tour will take place on Friday 9 – Sunday 11 August. Starting from Dundee’s iconic waterfront area, the 103km opening stage will take in the Tay Road Bridge and travel down through the Kingdom of Fife to finish in Pittencrief Park, Dunfermline. Stage Two is a 139.4km route departing on Saturday 10 August 2019 from Glasgow’s George Square, sweeping through The Trossachs and finishing in the centre of Perth.

The final stage will start and finish in the beautiful setting of Holyrood Park, the famous Royal Park in central Edinburgh.  The 118.3km stage will include three Queen of the Mountain climbs.

Katie Archibald MBE, Commonwealth, World and Olympic Champion and Women’s Tour of Scotland ambassador, said: “I can’t wait for the summer. To be riding my bike in a professional women’s bike race in Scotland is so exciting. I’m really looking forward to taking part and hopefully there will be plenty of people out on the roads supporting us. 

“Not only do we have the Women’s Tour of Scotland for the next few years taking place every August, but with the World Championships coming to Scotland in a few years, I think the enthusiasm for the sport in our country is only going to grow.”

To find out more, visit https://womenstourofscotland.com/

Golf: The Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open – 8 – 11 August

The co-sanctioned ASI Ladies Scottish Open is one of the premier events on the Ladies European Tour and the LPGA. It will be held at The Renaissance Club in North Berwick for the first time just three weeks after the men’s Scottish Open. Tickets for this event are FREE and it is the final qualifying event for players looking to make Team Europe ahead of The 2019 Solheim Cup.

To find out more, visit https://ladiesscottishopen.com/

Cricket: ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup T20 Global Qualifier - 31 August – 7 September

The Women's T20 World Cup Global Qualifier will take place in Dundee and Angus. The event is the final global qualifier for the T20 Women's World Cup, which is being staged in Australia next year. The qualifier will see eight teams - Scotland, Netherlands, Ireland, Papa New Guinea, Thailand, USA, Zimbabwe, and Bangladesh – compete for the final two qualifying places at next year tournament.

Samantha Haggo, Scotland cricketer, said: “2019 has been a big year for us and we're really excited to be hosting the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Global Qualifier in Dundee and Angus.

“In the past, the qualifier has been held in places such as Thailand and Sri Lanka so we're looking forward to being able to play in our own backyard this time around and will be aiming to capitalise on our home advantage.

“We've been working really hard on our skills over the past 12 months, never losing sight of our goal of reaching our first ever World Cup. The girls can't wait to get going and hope that people get behind us and come to watch.

“Women's cricket is one of the world's fastest growing sports and so this is a great opportunity for people to see what we're about and the skills we have to offer.”

Entry will be free for all games. For more information, visit www.cricketscotland.com

Golf: Solheim Cup - 9 – 15 September (comp days 13 – 15)

Hosted by VisitScotland, The 2019 Solheim Cup aims to be the biggest ever European edition of the event and the most family-focused golf event in history, with around 100,000 spectators expected at Gleneagles in September. It is the pinnacle of women’s golf with the best players from Europe and the USA going head-to-head in match play formation. The 16^th edition promises to be one of the highlights on the women’s world sporting calendar in 2019.

To find our more and get tickets, visit https://www.solheimcup2019.com/