Two POWER consortium members held their national Info Days around International Women’s Day in March 2026.
Both events successfully raised awareness about our project, celebrated women in sport and contributed to the discussion on women’s portrayal in the sports media.
Our Portuguese partner, Sport Evolution Alliance held its Info Day on 5March 2026 at the headquarters of the Portuguese Olympic Committee in Lisbon.
The event was a meaningful and well-framed occasion to reflect on women’s representation in sport, bringing together athletes, communication professionals and institutional voices in an open discussion. Fernando Gomes, President of the Portuguese Olympic Committee opened the event, and he was followed by several high-profile speakers, including Olympic medallist Telma Monteiro, Deaflympic medallist Margarida Silva and Pedro Dias, Portuguese Secretary of State for Sport.
The event did not only focus on how often women athletes appear in the media, but also on how they are portrayed, how much weight is given to their achievements, and what kinds of stories are told about them. The POWER research findings were presented by Thiago Santos, POWER’s Research Team Leader.
Another strong element was the combination of perspectives from elite sport, lived experience and brand communication. Telma Monteiro encouraged women to be courageous in pursuing recognition in sport, while Margarida Silva reinforced the importance of showing identity and values.
“The event was more than a symbolic celebration: it created a credible space for discussion, linked institutional commitment with real athlete testimony, and addressed gender representation in sport in a thoughtful and contemporary way. That mix made it a strong Info Day, especially for the POWER project that wants both relevance and impact”, said Juliane Robra from Sport Evolution Alliance.
Our Spanish partner, UFEC organised its Info Day on 9 March in Barcelona for 50 participants. The guest star of the event was Laia Palau, a legendary Spanish basketball point guard, widely regarded as one of the greatest playmakers in women’s basketball history. She is known for her leadership longevity, and record-breaking international career with Spain.
During the Spanish Info Day the findings of the POWER research were also presented.
A video recap of the Spanish Info Day is available here.
