THE CHILEAN OLYMPIC COMMITTEE LAUNCHES A NEW SPORTS INITIATION PROGRAM FOR GIRLS: “I LOVE PLAYING SPORTS”

Share

The Committee’s Commission on Women and Gender Equity seeks to encourage and promote physical activity among women through a program focused on schoolgirls aged 10 to 13. The project will benefit more than 80 girls at the Almendral School in the La Pintana district.

Promoting women’s sports is the main objective of the new program, girls devised by the Women and Gender Equality Commission of the Chilean Olympic Committee, in which the Almendral School in La Pintana is participating.

As part of its efforts to improve girls’ access to sports and facilitate the early identification of talent, the Committee developed a 10-session program featuring basketball, artistic gymnastics, and indoor volleyball at the Marlene Ahrens Olympic Training Center in Santiago.

This initiative benefits more than 80 students at the school, which is part of the Nocedal Foundation. The organization uses sports as a key tool for holistic development and social mobility for the country’s most vulnerable sectors.

COCH Director Patricia López, who also serves as the Commission’s president, stated: “We are very happy to have launched this sports initiation program. Our committee is not only concerned with high performance but also with contributing to the search for and development of new athletic talent, especially among women. We want to make sports more accessible, promote physical activity, and ensure that girls have more opportunities.”

Opening Doors

Basketball coach Julia Acevedo explained the importance of this project: “As a woman, a referee, and a coach, I’ve seen how a court can become a place where girls discover their strength, build confidence, and learn to believe in themselves. Every pass, every challenge, and every achievement teaches them that they are capable, that their voice matters, and that there are no limits to their dreams.”

Along the same lines, Stefanía Echeverría, one of the gymnastics coaches, adds: “It’s an invaluable opportunity to bring sports to girls who often don’t have access to formative experiences like this. Artistic gymnastics not only develops physical skills such as coordination, strength, balance, and flexibility, but also reinforces fundamental values such as discipline, perseverance, self-confidence, and teamwork.”

“Between the ages of 10 and 13, access to physical activity is not just a recreational opportunity, but a fundamental pillar for building confidence, teamwork, and leadership among the future women of our country,” said Cristóbal Orellana, who, along with Walter Balmaceda, leads the volleyball training sessions.“That is why, through this program, we reaffirm our commitment to making sports accessible to all, creating key training opportunities for girls.”