When Everyone Wins

The Toronto Tempo came to Vancouver for two games. What happened around them was an even bigger reminder of what’s possible when people across women’s sport share what they know and get behind each other.

“This is how women’s sport should work.”

That was SHE’S GOT NEXT founder Julie Smulders’ take after a pretty remarkable weekend with the Toronto Tempo in Vancouver.

Before the first of two games, nearly 200 SHE’S GOT NEXT members, Tempo VIPs and community leaders joined us for Tempo Talks: Elevating the Game, presented by Sephora, a pregame gathering co-hosted by the Toronto Tempo and SHE’S GOT NEXT.

The room was filled with people helping shape women’s sport from different angles — athletes, coaches, executives, students, business leaders and storytellers.

And there was a lot worth talking about.

Teresa Resch, President of the Toronto Tempo; Olympic gold medallist and Vancouver Goldeneyes forward Sarah Nurse; filmmaker Kat Jayme; and Julie joined a conversation moderated by Michelle Collens about leadership, performance, storytelling and what it takes to keep moving women’s sport forward.

Teresa talked about flipping the script on investment. For too long, women’s sport has been asked to prove the audience, prove the business case and prove the opportunity before getting the resources required to build any of them.

Her message: “Invest in us and we’ll prove it — not the other way around.”

Sarah brought the perspective of an athlete competing at the highest level. Kat talked about the power of storytelling and whose stories get told. Michelle drew from years of bringing major sporting events to Vancouver. And Julie talked about getting beyond the scarcity mindset and knowing there is enough to go around.

That idea seemed to be playing out all around us.

People representing different teams, leagues, sports and organizations were sharing information, making introductions, asking questions, offering help and genuinely wanting to see each other succeed.

There was competition in the room. Of course there was. But there was also an understanding that growing women’s sport is bigger than any one team, league or organization.

Someone else succeeding doesn’t mean there’s less opportunity for you.

In fact, right now, the opposite may be true.

Every successful team builds the audience. Every great event brings more people in. Every investment demonstrates what’s possible. Every athlete whose story gets told makes women’s sport more visible. And every person who shares what they’ve learned can make the path a little easier for the person coming behind them.

That’s what Julie meant when she said, “This is how women’s sport should work.”

And then we got to see another side of that momentum.

SHE’S GOT NEXT had 100 members sitting together at centre court at each of the Tempo’s two Vancouver games — cheering, connecting and helping fill the building for women’s professional basketball.

The crowds were great. The basketball was great.

But what stayed with us was everything happening around the games.

People sharing what they know. People getting behind what others are building. People seeing more possibility, not less, when someone else succeeds.

There’s enough to go around. Let’s build more of it.

Head to Instagram for more photos from the event. →