UK Athletics chief executive Joanna Coats says there is still a long way to go in the fight for board diversity in sports.

Coates was appointed to the UKA position last year and was immediately committed to radically changing the culture of the sport to promote greater inclusivity and diversity at all levels.

A report released in February also highlighted “significant cultural and systemic issues” in top athletics training in the UK, with Coats believing that the problem starts with decision-makers at the top.

“When you look at the positions that women occupy on the board of directors, they are not usually strategic positions,” Coats said. Sky sports news.

“There are probably 30 percent women in the boardroom, but there is no transition from senior management level to CEO.

“You talk about the lack of female CEOs, but the same is the case for performance directors – there are very few female performance directors and few female head coaches.

“So we still have a long way to go – I can’t believe I’m still sitting here as a minority person in 2021 when you look at the top officials in the game.”

However, Coats, who began his football career before successfully raising the profile of England netball, believes that things are slowly changing.

“We’re doing our best, but it’s always hard to see women succeed,” Kot said.

“People like me have a responsibility to work with groups of young women to make sure they know they have a place in sports.

“But I think you will start seeing more women because you see more women leaders.”