Equity, diversity and inclusion in curling and beyond

Some sports have a reputation for being homogeneous.

However, research in Waterloo’s Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies (RLS) is making transformative change by identifying barriers that currently exist, helping to usher in a more diverse membership in a wide range of sports and recreation activities.

A recent example is a collaboration between the University of Waterloo and Curling Canada: a symposium called Changing the Face of Curling, hosted in Niagara Falls in May, and organized by RLS Professor Heather Mair with the support of Master’s student Peggy Vacalopoulos and undergraduate students Kaileigh Dakins and Trisha Cho.

This first-of-its-kind knowledge mobilization event engaged grassroots curling leaders in Canada with the goal of starting a conversation about the lack of diversity in curling, and ultimately welcoming greater diversity and inclusion. More than 150 participants attended, and speakers included academic researchers from across Canada, curling association representatives from as far away as Sweden, equity, diversity and inclusion experts, coaches, Curling Canada officials and community members.

Importantly, curlers with a diverse range of identities, including Indigenous, Metis, Black, Muslim, Paralympic Gold medalist and 2SLGBTQ+members, spoke passionately about how it felt to join a sport where they did not look like the majority, leading to some hard but crucially needed conversations. This innovative event provided a space for curlers from all walks of life to address the fact that for too long, curling has been seen as, too White, and most importantly, how to look at ways to address this lack of diversity.

UWaterloo RLS alumnus Richard Norman spoke about “Moving beyond diversity and inclusion,” exploring the intersections of ‘race,’ whiteness and colonialism in the sport of curling, and ways to deconstruct this dynamic. It was based on his doctoral work, which was supervised by UWaterloo researchers Katie Misener (pictured below) and Mair. Another former graduate student of Mair’s, Simon Barrick, who completed a Master’s degree in RLS, also gave a keynote, where he addressed the ethical considerations for involving newcomers in curling.

Mair addressed the role of personal relationships and community-building in curling and offered valuable tips for clubs to broaden their perspective to attract and support new members. Misener spoke about how community sport organizations are expanding their efforts to tackle social issues, especially the need to address inclusion and diversity as Canadians are looking for principle-driven sport opportunities.

Curling clubs began to talk to each other about these issues, and while groups were on different points on the journey, with some feeling overwhelmed, others shared strategies they have been putting in place to address lack of diversity. Trust was created by this sharing along with the previous panel sessions, and participants had the space to be vulnerable, asking for help in transforming their own associations.

“Things were resonating,” Mair says. “In addition to sparking ideas for increasing the inclusivity of curling clubs across Canada, this event led to continuing conversations that will see international partnerships examining the structure of curling with the potential to positively change the sport of curling at every level.”

She adds, “More broadly, this research has the potential to address inclusion and diversity in all sports and recreation. These are the kinds of initiatives that can enact real change in the world of sport and recreation locally and beyond.”

To read CBC coverage of this event, please visit Officials aim to 'change the face of curling' by welcoming greater diversity, inclusion | CBC Sports
 

Symposium and Katie Misener photos: Danielle Inglis/Curling Canada

Pictured at top: Heather Mair, Peggy Vacalopoulos, Simon Barrick and Richard Norman