MAREE TODD MSP VISITS ICE RINK DURING SCOTTISH WOMEN AND GIRLS IN SPORT WEEK 2022
Maree Todd, Minister for Public Health, Women’s Health, and Sport, visited Inverness Ice Centre for a round of curling during Scottish Women and Girls in Sport Week 2022. Besides getting on the ice, this was a great opportunity to chat about female participation in curling as well as about the future of the sport.
Local female curlers were onsite in Inverness to show the minister the ropes and share the joys of the sport. They spoke passionately about why they love curling and underlined the health and social benefits that come with playing. Scottish Curling Head of Development Eilidh McCall-Lawrie and RCCC President Mike Ferguson also attended the event.
Promoting and increasing female participation in curling, on and off the ice, is a priority on the Scottish Curling agenda. As a sport, curling offers a great chance for a gender balanced community and due to its sociable and inclusive nature, it impeccably embodies the physical, mental, and social health benefits of sport. Maree Todd’s visit was welcomed to highlight the commitment to getting women and girls involved in curling and to celebrate the opportunities that come with engaging in the sport.
Maree said of her visit: ‘I absolutely loved having a go at curling. It was totally inspiring to participate in a sport with women of all ages – every single one of them more able than me! Huge fun was had, the sisterhood is strong in curling!’
‘Sport has such a positive impact on people’s lives and for women and girls,’ Eilidh said. ‘It can have a huge benefit in terms of both physical and mental wellbeing as well as self-confidence. It’s great to have role models in our sport, such as Olympic gold medallist Eve Muirhead, that girls can look up to what she’s achieved and hopefully strive to be the best they can be, both in curling and anything else they do.’
The minister’s visit also offered an opportunity to discuss ways to secure the future of the sport in Scotland regarding the rising energy costs. Bruce Crawford, CEO at Scottish Curling, said:
‘Curling is one of the oldest and most successful sports in Scotland, but its future, as well as that of all ice sports, is in a precarious situation due to the heavy reliance on energy to keep the playing surface frozen. The governmental intervention of reducing the cost of energy for all businesses is a tremendous help for this winter. However, we have presented the case to the Scottish Government that ice rinks will need support in the longer term to help make their facilities as efficient as possible as well as to find innovative solutions to generate energy from renewables and make the rinks less susceptible to future energy price rises.’
