"Where's everybody else?"
The following post has been written by VC's CEO Adriana Withers.
I recently saw a clip of Billie Jean King being interviewed by Seth Meyers talking about the movie Battle of the Sexes, which tells the story of the 1973 tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs.
When asked about the match, King says it was all about social change and recalls being 12 years old at a tennis club surrounded by everything white - including all the players. She asked herself, "Where's everybody else?"
I couldn't agree more with Billie Jean King in this interview. This idea of sport, one of the most joyous and potentially empowering activities, being passively (and actively) exclusive to many people is the drive behind all of VC's equity efforts.
The VC team is looking forward to working more on projects like Discs for Development with Discraft and the Face of Ultimate campaign with the World Flying Disc Federation. The goals are to get more discs out to as many development programs around the world and to show all potential players that they can be, and are, the face of ultimate.
As members of the ultimate community, we need to be thinking, talking about and working on supporting the inclusion of all in our sport. Sport does make a difference in people's lives - through health, community and values. Thank you to all that are making a change with their efforts in this area - please be in touch; we're here to help.
VC & WFDF Partnership: The Face of Ultimate & VC Ultimate Company Values Statement
The World Flying Disc Federation is the international governing body for flying disc sports, with responsibility for sanctioning world championship events, establishing uniform rules, setting of standards for and recording of world records. VC is the Official Apparel Partner of WFDF.
As our sport matures past the stage of “what is ultimate” around the world, thanks in large part to the amazing accomplishment of WFDF securing recognition from the International Olympic Committee, we are now faced with the question of “who is ultimate”?
Ultimate can be everyone, and it’s important that the international governing body promotes that in every way it can. VC wants to be your partner in this mission.
To us, this includes showcasing both male and female players from around the world, of all ethnic and religious backgrounds, competing and playing our sport respectfully against one another.
To us, this embraces a commitment to having all advertising materials representing players from all continents equally.
To us, this means proactively ensuring that on-and-off-field footage from events includes a diverse make up of players and is equitably split between the divisions.
To us, this means that no person around the world should think that he or she doesn’t look like an ultimate player.
To us, this is the embodiment of Spirt of the Game and it’s what makes our sport so uniquely special and important to grow throughout the world.