Global sports brand Puma has launched its 2023 Puma Accelerator program, with 50-80 female athletes across Oceania expected to take part.
Puma is working with Australian magazine Women’s Agenda to facilitate the program following its pilot launch in 2022.
The 2023 program is open to emerging athletes aged 16 to 35 who are participating in AFLW, NRLW, soccer, netball, basketball or athletics, and will run from May to July 2023.
Puma Oceania GM Pancho Gutstein welcomed its second instalment of the accelerator program.
“We are seeing the huge value women’s sport brings to the community, especially from individual athletes demonstrating grit, determination and excellence,” Gutstein said. “Our goal is to support those athletes on the cusp of reaching the next level, whether that be to national competitions, going professional, or even to Paris in 2024 or Los Angeles in 2028.
“We want to give the next generation more opportunities to learn, connect and set themselves up for great careers in their sport and beyond.”
Selected female athletes will participate in online workshops with trainers including Australian tennis coach Jelena Dokic, Australian marathon runner Nedd Brockmann, and sporting physician Dr Rachel Harris. It will include learning modules to support their sporting careers across areas such as mindset, finance, psychology, resilience, and menstrual health.
Puma Oceania senior head of marketing Neysa Goh said that there is a growing interest in women’s sport.
“These athletes must be supported,” Goh said. “That’s why Puma is committed to this program, and taking authentic action to get behind women and accelerate their careers.”
According to research conducted by Fox Sports in 2022, seven in 10 Australians watch more women’s sport than they did before 2020.
It also found that two thirds (66%) of Australians have tuned in to watch women’s sport on TV, with men making up two-thirds of all viewers across AFLW, NRLW and the WBBL.
Foxtel Group chief content and commercial officer Amanda Laing said women’s sport across different codes are growing in popularity.
“It’s clear that Australians have a huge appetite for watching great sport, regardless of whether it is being played by men or women,” Laing said.
“With greater exposure comes more fans, more sponsorship, and more attendance for the sports which we partner with, ultimately strengthening a sport by providing stronger revenue.”
Speaking on Puma’s 2022 program, Women’s Agenda publisher and ongoing Puma Accelerator facilitator Angela Priestley said she saw a strong growth of athletes.
“The way participants supported each other and the tips they took on to accelerate their careers was incredible to see,” Priestley said. “The graduates told us the program gave them more motivation and greater confidence to navigate their careers mentally, emotionally and physically. Tools on resilience, finance and understanding contracts were also noted as particularly helpful.
“We can’t wait to meet the class of 2023.”