Strava, the leading digital community which now boasts more than 125 million athletes, is continuing its ‘Strive for More’ commitment to support women in sport with its third year of sponsorship of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift (August 12-18).
According to recent survey data from Strava, accessibility and interest in women’s sports content is still lagging behind men’s sports. This disparity is particularly visible with women’s cycling.
Survey respondents were 26% less likely to have watched women’s sports as compared to men’s in the past three months. Strava notes that this result is not surprising, given that only 15% of current sports coverage is dedicated to women’s leagues and teams (and even this is triple what it was five years ago).
Closing the gap in media coverage has the potential to massively impact viewership and engagement, as 44% of respondents said they would watch more women’s sports if there was more social and media coverage. There is still a perception bias to overcome, however, with 29% of respondents saying their top reason for not engaging was that men’s events are more fun and dynamic to watch.
Conducted in July 2024, the survey was served to an external audience, not targeted at Strava athletes specifically. In total, there were 3,680 respondents (Brazil, France, Spain, UK, USA). Strava added that respondents were diverse in age, income, region, ethnicity; and the gender split was equal.
Strava is teaming up with TOGETHXR to call on more coverage, viewership of and conversation around women’s cycling.
Additionally, as the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift gets under way (August 12-18), Strava is teaming up with Tobin Heath, two-time Olympic gold medallist, two-time FIFA World Cup Champion, US Women’s National Soccer Team member, and co-founder of RE-INC. This aims to show an inside look behind the scenes at the dedication and grit of this year’s riders to further bring awareness and attention to the sport.
“Women are the future of sports, new media and conversation that define what progress and equity is all about,” said Tobin Heath. “It’s important to advocate for all women’s sports, and to continue to get out of our comfort zone.
“As an athlete who is also a newbie to cycling, I’m in awe of the women who sacrifice their blood, sweat and tears to get to the starting line of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. I’m proud to rally the community on the ground and across the globe to give their time and attention to watch these women and their incredible and exciting sport.”
Noting that fans can drive change, this year Strava is offering tools to watch, represent and obsess over the Tour de France Femmes. This includes exclusive behind the scenes content. Strava and TOGETHXR have also produced a watch guide for info on where to watch and tune in to the elite women’s cycling race. For fans on the ground in France, the ‘Femmes on Tour’ van from Strava x TOGETHXR will be offering free custom merch and other goodies throughout the week.
Strive for More is a US$1 million financial commitment by Strava over three years to promote and support women in movement and sport. Launched in July 2022 in conjunction with the first Tour de France Femmes in over 30 years, Strava is working alongside organizations and athletes to help build pathways to advance equity and inclusion.
Since its inception, the Strive for More initiative has worked with The Cyclists’ Alliance, helping to fund TCAMP, a mentorship program that helps get more women to competitive races; and GRLS, an initiative by Women Win that aims to advance gender equity in and through sport and play.
www.strava.com
www.letourfemmes.fr
