Women in the front row at 2011 Rugby Union World Cup

from BBC News:

Think of rugby union – and a bunch of muscular men kicking and chasing an oval-shaped ball may well come to mind.

And, with the 2011 Rugby World Cup under way in New Zealand, it is easy to forget that women have also been playing the game since the 19th century.

Indeed, in recent years the fairer sex has been infiltrating this “masculine” game more and more – both on and off the field.

So much so that in March 2011, the International Rugby Board (IRB) announced its first-ever Women’s Referee Panel, giving eight women an opportunity to regularly officiate international men’s and women’s matches.

With women in rugby jerseys rucking and mauling to get the female version of the sport widely accepted, women in business attire have also been working hard to become visible in the world of rugby off the field.

But, as in other sports traditionally perceived as male-dominated, there are still more men than women at the administrative helm of world rugby union – although this culture seems to be slowly changing.

As men in shorts collide on the grass at the World Cup, an army of businesswomen is overseeing the action off the field.

More than 60% of staff at the cup organising committee, RNZ 2011, are women, many of whom occupy leadership roles.

The event’s Chief Operating Officer is Therese Walsh, who is in charge of the financial, IT, HR, administrative and commercial areas of the tournament.

She says there are many women executives involved in rugby in her home country because New Zealand is such a “sporting nation”.

“Many will see involvement in sport as a business career, and I have been involved in rugby for around 10 years now, firstly with the NZ Rugby Union and then with the organising committee for RWC 2011,” she says.

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