Raising More Voices in Sport Through Activism and Mentorship

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“When I know there’s a need out there, I just go and do it,” says Stef Strack. “That’s how I work.”

As a matter of fact. Within the past two weeks, the 41-year-old athletic apparel executive contacted Senator Amy Klobuchar to ask for her support for the Fair play law for women; made a short documentary about the culture of running with Olympian Allyson Felix; and otherwise the wheels kept turning voice in sportsa young company that Strack founded during the pandemic to meet the needs of young female athletes.

Voice in Sport (VIS) and its nonprofit sister, the Voice in Sport Foundation, have a multi-pronged mission to empower girls ages 13-23 to exercise, uplift all female voices in the sports industry, and achieve greater visibility and advocacy level the playing field. The focus on middle, high and high school girls is no coincidence.

“The sports industry treats this group as an initiative, not a focus,” says the former Nike exec, adding that in the past she hasn’t received the love and attention she needs – a fact she understands both from her personal… as well as from their professional experience.

From Alaska to DC

A skier and soccer player who grew up in Anchorage, Strack won a junior Olympic gold medal in downhill skiing and, in perhaps an even more important win, he addressed a school board meeting as a middle school student to protest his decision to quit middle school sports.

“I learned early on the power of using your voice to drive change,” she says.

Strack transferred to the Lower 48 to play NCAA Division 1 football at the University of Montana, eventually hitting a wall she couldn’t scale.

“I was struggling with injuries. I wasn’t prepared for college. I gained weight,” she says, “I struggled with body image and ended up leaving the team.”

A common history for female athletes in their late teens and early 20s, but Strack has made it (much) further than most. According to the Women’s Sports FoundationAt the age of 14, girls are twice as likely to drop out as boys. Just as loud State Association of State Higher Education Associations1.13 million boys play more high school sports than girls.

Anyone who was frustrated by not seeing the key moves by the leading women in a major marathon Because the camera is focused on the men, there is an awareness of the significant gap between men’s and women’s sport. Coverage is just one area of ​​inequality; although Title IX is celebrating its 50th birthday^th In last year’s anniversary, all aspects of women’s sport, including funding, support and visibility, appear to be around mile 11 of the equality marathon. If Voice in Sport has its way, the movement will soon pick up speed.

Listen first, then deliver

During her 14-year career at Nike, where Strack was typically one of the few women in a room full of men, she developed important mentorships that bolstered her skills and confidence. Strack accepted an offer as CEO at Rag + Bone in 2019, the same year the US women’s soccer team won the World Cup. The team was invited to the White House, and Golden Boot winner Megan Rapinoe declined to go. Rapinoe’s action caused Strack to reconsider her own journey. “I thought this is a strong time for women’s sports,” says Strack, “what am I doing in a fashion company?”

Recognizing that her knowledge of apparel and footwear went much deeper than the issues young athletes face today, Strack spent six months on a listening tour listening to athletes talk about the gaps they faced in terms of support and felt knowledge. This eventually became the basis of Streck’s new entrepreneurial vision for Voice in Sport. Key themes – mind, body, nutrition and advocacy – quickly emerged and are now the pillars for Voice in Sport’s uplifting content.

Along the way, roles for the platform solidified: mentors (professional and collegiate athletes undergoing in-house training); Experts (certified sports psychologists, nutritionists, sports physicians); and of course athletes who can also be trained on Title IX issues and become advocates.

Olympians Colleen Quigley and Elise Cranny were some of the first mentors to enlist, and each spoke openly about their struggles with mental health and RED-S, respectively. Since then, the team mentoring program has grown to include over 200 international athletes, including track and field legend Felix, who has spent much of her storied career running for Nike despite the company not having done so an Athlete Forward Pregnancy Policy.

“Allyson was outside of a major sports company fighting for change as an athlete,” says Strack, “and I was within the same company and passionate about supporting women. We both started our companies – Allyson started it Saysch– with the intent to drive change and take action. We both know there can be another way forward.”

voice in sports

As a VIS board member, Felix promotes an inclusive, supportive perspective that complements the company, but she doesn’t just talk to other adults about concepts. Like the other mentors and experts, Felix is ​​authentically integrated into the platform, Hold live sessions to connect with young athletes; Her March theme is to stand up for yourself in sports. Members can also tune in to chat with Olympic gold medalist and USC running legend Kendall Ellis about the recruitment process, TLC their body with Canadian Olympic sprinter Maddy Price on mobility montages, ask Olympian Shae Anderson questions about finding balance, or more Learn about the importance of carbohydrates from nutritionist Karla Ilicic. (VIS offers one free session per month; one-to-one sessions and other sessions with mentors or experts can be added for a fee.)

IMAGE – STEF AND ALLYSON

True to its name, Voice in Sport constantly strives to amplify its voice. VIS Studio will release the documentary starring Felix this summer and, with enough support, the Fair play law for women will be officially introduced as a bill in June. Meanwhile, Strack is heading to Miami for a 5k run in early March to celebrate Women’s History Month and host a VIS panel. However, she realizes that she is only the messenger.

“The voices of young women are at the heart of VIS,” she says. “We build the tools for my daughter, for Allyson’s daughter Camryn, for all daughters.”