Is Manchester United OK….?

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We’re getting stuck right into Manchester United this week (sorry, coming out of the gates strong in this editor letter, bear with us).

ICYMI: News has been circulating over the last week about UK football club Manchester United announcing that the women's team will be moved into portable buildings at the Manchester United training complex this season, so that the men's squad can use the women's building while their own indoor facilities are being renovated. As Lucy Small writes further down in this edition, it’s alarming but sadly not a unique story. 

It really got us talking about how while there seems to be quite a few steps forward recently, it just feels like such a big step back. Apparently the Professional Footballers’ Association is going to be chatting with Manchester United - so keep an eye out for updates.

In some good news - from this week, funding criteria for all Victorian Government community sports infrastructure programs will require local councils to have a gender equitable access and use policy in place - and to be showing progress against that policy over time. This will ensure fairer access to community sports facilities, including ovals, courts and change rooms. Manchester United - take note?

Over on our website and socials we have launched our profile series of leading up-and-coming female athletes who you’ll see at the Paris Olympics and Paralympics. It’s a series not to be missed.

The Missing Perspectives team xx

PS - We’re honoured to have been included on this list of women’s sports newsletters curated by Siren!

PPS - Paralympics Australia Chief Executive Catherine Clark has resigned less than two months out from the Paris games. We’re going to be discussing this on MP soon so keep an eye out.

Simran Pascricha: Who is Slovenia rock climber Janja Garnbret who is set to take the Olympics by storm?

At just 25 years old, Janja Garnbret has already made sporting history.

The Slovenian climbing phenom became the first-ever female Olympic gold medalist in the sport at the Tokyo 2020 Games, a feat that cemented her status as one of the greatest climbers of all time. As we approach the 2024 Paris Olympics, it's the perfect time to get to know Janja and her remarkable achievements.

Garnbret's journey to the top (pun absolutely intended) has been nothing short of remarkable. She discovered her passion for climbing at the young age of seven, scaling doors, cupboards, and trees, inspiring her non-climbing parents to put that energy elsewhere.

She told Red Bull TV, “I remember when we were kids, the others were just playing ball or other games. I didn't want to get off the wall. I’d be on it for an hour and a half at a time, moving left to right, right to left, up, down. Even back then, I knew this was it. This was what I wanted to do.”

Her rise in the climbing space was meteoric.

Read the full profile on missingperspectives.com.

Lucy Small: Why is the Man United men's team allowing the women's team to be moved into demountables?

What is it with “state-of-the-art facilities” being a priority for clubs and sporting bodies for men but not women athletes?

News has been circulating over the last few days about UK football club Manchester United announcing that the women's team will be moved into portable buildings at the Manchester United training complex this season, so that the men's squad can use the women's building while their own indoor facilities are being renovated. This is alarming but sadly not a unique story. 

Last year I was at a sporting luncheon where men’s Sydney Swans co-captain Dane Rampe was giving a talk and in it he was asked about the Swan’s men’s team moving to new state of the art facilities - a hub with a price tag of $70 million. During the chat a guy, face shiny with sweat, leaned across the table and whispered to me, “and the women’s team get the old facilities, isn’t that fantastic?” I wanted to spit my drink at him - why do women not get state-of-the-art? How on earth do we expect women athletes to deliver the same performance level when they’re operating out of sub par facilities?

The Man United men’s team should just say no. They should tell the club that forcing the women’s team to make way for the men is not OK - this fight shouldn’t be always left to women. Recently, the Danish national men’s team turned down a pay rise in solidarity with the women’s national team - this show of support shouldn’t be unique, it should be the norm. No one wants to train out of demountables - if it’s not good enough for men, then it’s not good enough for women either. Or, if they’re going to force the women out of their facilities for a season, give them the state of the art £50 million new build. 

A lil’ sponsored post from the ACT Government

“I tell people the same thing over and over about Canberra: I moved for the job, but really stayed for the lifestyle. Seriously - bear with me.

Over the months that followed, I fell in love with the city. There was something so special about waking up in the city-where-it-happens (had to include a Hamilton reference, sorry), walking around the stunning Lake Burley Griffin (affectionately known as LBG by locals), and heading up towards the National Triangle to work - a strip containing some of Australia’s most significant buildings. Passing Parliament House each morning was a daily reminder of the importance of the work I was doing in Canberra.”

In a new piece for Missing Perspectives, Phoebe unpacks why she was surprised by how much she loved living in Canberra. Read it here.