Kaitlyn Lehbert — Female Athlete Movement

Tell the Female Athlete Movement readers a little bit about yourself.

My name is Kaitlyn Lehbert. I am 21 years old and am from Ontario, Canada. I just finalized my final semester of university where I was pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Sports Management. My sports background is not a typical story. Growing up, I didn’t have much involvement in sports. I think that was because I was worried about the competitive aspect and feared not being good enough. It wasn’t until I started at M.M Robinson high school that my involvement in sports really grew. Along with some friends, I joined in on volunteering for the boy’s football team. The tasks included filming the games for the players to refer back to as well as some other tasks here and there to help the team. I enjoyed volunteering for the team so much that I continued to do so for the rest of my time in high school. With each year, the tasks I did for the team grew. In my grade 12 year, I also volunteered for the boy's baseball team as a scorekeeper.

I truly believe that if it wasn’t for these experiences, I wouldn’t have pursued what I did in university. It was towards the end of Grade 12 where I had what you would say was an epiphany moment where I realized how passionate I was about sports. Everything worked out when I was accepted to Brock University for their Sports Management program.

How did you first discover and immerse yourself into the girls and women in sports area?

I first discovered the girls and women in sports area by attending an event called Hockey is Her hosted by She’s 4 Sports in January 2019. I found myself connecting so much with the conversation despite myself not playing or working in hockey. This led me to search for more events and volunteer opportunities directly with a focus on girls and women in sport. Each event has provided me with so much value and insight. On some lucky days, there is more than one event taking place on the same day, at a different time, in the same city- these days are the best!

I was given the opportunity to be involved with planning a women in sports event at my university in November 2019. It’s safe to say I have a special place in my heart for girls and women in sports events and my involvement with them is just getting started!

What would you say to a young girl participating in sports?

The main advice I would give to a young girl who is starting to participate in sports is to try as many sports as you’d like! Don’t let a fear of not being good enough, hold you back. If I could go back in time, I would have encouraged myself to try a variety of sports and to continue participating in them while growing up.

How do you find and maintain motivation?

The main way in which I find and maintain motivation is through something called “The Law of Attraction”. It essentially involves manifesting and making whatever is in your ideal future to become a reality. Part of the Law of Attraction also includes visualization. If you are curious about it, I’d recommend looking up people like Gabrielle Bernstein, Bob Proctor, Oprah, and Mike Dooley and listening to them talk about it. This concept continuously provides me with motivation because it allows me to believe that whatever I wish to have happen in my future is attainable! Why couldn’t it be? My biggest takeaway of the Law of Attraction is the concept of “I am prepared to receive this or something better”. This means that you shouldn’t get too attached to the small details and be understanding that a different outcome is more ideal for you.

What are some goals that you want to accomplish in the future?

Some goals that I want to accomplish in the future include:

Beginning a podcast that interviews and highlights women in sports.

Pursuing a Master’s Degree with the focus being around girls and women in sport.

Volunteering in the sports for development area!

Starting an organization that focuses on many aspects relating to girls and women’s involvement in sports! I ideally would like to eventually reach the level where my organization operates within Canada and the United States and eventually expanding globally!

Working with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in some capacity, and especially focusing on their girls and women in sports initiatives.

Working in the surf industry! I don’t know if it is a general curiosity or the fact that I love anything water and beach-related but I’d love to immerse myself within this industry.

Teaching my own course at a university around the topic of women in sport.

Who are people and/or organizations that you look up to?

Billie Jean King. I highly recommend watching the movie, Battle of the Sexes that is based on her tennis career and a historical match that she won. I just bought one of her books, Pressure is a Privilege, which I am loving so far!

Dr. Jen Welter. I’ve heard her speak in person, on podcasts and in videos. I swear everything she says is golden! One of the best lessons I’ve taken from her is when she said at a girl’s flag football camp, “Thankfully I’ve gotten to the point, it took a while, where those guys realized that I wasn’t a female player or a female coach. I was a baller and I was a coach. The good ones will get there, the other ones, just go score on them.” She also wrote an amazing book named Play Big, Lessons In Being Limitless From the First Woman to Coach in the NFL.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Where do I even begin…? I first learned about this team after they hired two female full-time assistant coaches, Lori Locust and Maral Javadifar in March 2019. It’s very clear the organization honours and respect gender equity by so many of its initiatives. They are the first NFL team to offer an academic girls football scholarship in the United States. They also host an annual girl’s flag football tournament and an annual Women of Red event to honour their female fan base.

The cherry on top of these people and organizations is that they have intertwined before! In 2018, Dr. Jen Welter has hosted a girls flag football camp with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Billie Jean King has met with the female staff of the Buccaneers and praised their gender equity efforts.

What recommendations do you have for someone that wants to learn about and/or be involved in gender equity in sports?

Some recommendations I have include:

Connecting with anyone and everyone through Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn. I have written in my profile bios, “Committed to advancing and achieving gender equity in sports”. I firmly believe that including this statement in my profile allows me to connect with like-minded individuals and clearly represents my values and objectives. Another way that I seek out these like-minded individuals is by searching hashtags like #girlsinsport or #womeninsport. Oftentimes, those with the same ideology will include something like this in their profile bio.

Watching girls and women in sports documentaries. There are so so many out there. I have found a lot through a website called Kanopy. Surely, there are also documentaries available on YouTube and Netflix. One documentary series I have loved from what I have watched so far is ESPN’s Nine for IX series. Another way to find available documentaries is through a website called Eventbrite.

When learning about the girls and women in sports area, learn it in its entirety! The main way in which I mean this is gaining insight with an intersectional lens. This means the information you are taking in is coming from girls and women of all diverse backgrounds. I also think it is so important to not judge by the name, title, or association of a person or organization. I believe that each person and organization can contribute something of value and that there is good that can come from broadening your horizon.

Thank you so much for reading! I hope part of this piece was able to resonate with you on some level! I can be found on Instagram at @kaitlynlehbert, on Twitter at @kaitlyn_lehbert and Facebook at www.facebook.com/kaitlyn.lehbert/. I share about the girls and women in sports area on all of these platforms. Feel free to connect and/or reach out to me for anything! Like I said in this piece, it’s so rewarding to connect with others that share my passion of gender equity in sports.