According to surveys by Sport England, millions of women and girls in the UK think negatively about sport. Sport is aggressively competitive. Sport is unfeminine and difficult and serious. Sport is only for people who are naturally good at it. Sport is dominated by men, and women are unwelcome. Sport doesn’t accept trans or non-binary people. Sport makes women’s bodies ugly.
These answers make us very sad at Sheffield Steel Roller Derby HQ. The stigma around sport means that millions of people are missing out on all the super amazing things that it can offer – mental and physical health, feeling strong and secure in your own body, self-esteem, and a sense of community and belonging. Luckily, 2015 has seen the launch of two amazing campaigns, This Girl Can and Trans Girls Can, celebrating women and girls being involved in sports on their terms, in whatever way they enjoy.
We love our sport. We love that our sport is played mostly by women all across the world. We love that our sport means putting skates on our feet and zooming around in circles. We love that our sport means taking any bad feelings from our day and turning them into the power to knock the other team off track. We love that our sport includes trans and non gender binary people. We love that our sport challenges stereotypes about what women and girls ‘should’ look like. We love that our sport means wearing a uniform that unites us, and still lets us express our own personalities and beliefs. We love that our sport ends with teams hugging and complimenting each other after every game. We love that our sport means accepting every single one of our members, no matter what they look like or where they come from.
Our sport is roller derby – and we want you!
Our senior league has been around since 2008, helping women in Sheffield fall in love with sport – and now we’re so happy to announce our new junior roller derby league, starting January 2016. Anyone aged 8-17 can join – regardless of gender identity, fitness level or experience. No one is born with wheels on their feet, so everyone comes to roller derby as a beginner. Our junior league will teach you everything you need to know about skating and roller derby, from the very basics of how to skate right up to playing the game.
You can find more information on our Join Us page.