Spotlight OTF Gender Bias Against Women In Tennis

THE REGION

There are 15 Pacific Island countries in the Oceania Region. All of them are “C” Class ITF member nations without voting rights. One of the nations, the Republic of Marshall Islands, is listed as suspended in the 2023 ITF Membership & Share Register. Together with Australia, Guam, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Northern Mariana Islands, and Tahiti/French Polynesia, these 21 nations form the Oceania Tennis Federation.

CULTURAL/HISTORICAL BACKGROUND IN REGARD TO WOMEN

According to the 2023 GENDER EQUALITY BRIEF FOR 14 PACIFIC ISLAND COUNTRIES AND TERRITORIES, Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) are working to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment. However, the same report also states that “Despite much progress, discrimination against women and gender inequality are regarded as the most pervasive and prevalent human rights violations in the Pacific.”

Some key points from the report:

• Only 11 of the 14 nations have ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) which was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1979 for the protection of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of women through the elimination of distinction, exclusion, or restriction made on the basis of sex.

• Women’s overall representation in national parliaments across the region is low. The Inter-Parliamentary Union states that, as of 1 March 2022, the average proportion of women in national parliaments in the Pacific Islands was 6.0%. This was the lowest of any global region and was significantly below the global average of 26.1%

• Gender-based violence and harassment at work impact women’s participation in employment and the quality of their work. While data is scarce, sexual harassment is the most widely reported form of violence and harassment in the workplace. Gender-based violence and harassment can occur anywhere work takes place, in all countries and sectors.

DAN O'CONNELL SORE POINT NO. 1
LACK OF OTF FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR WOMEN’S TENNIS

Dan writes, “In 2014, as the OTF Secretary General, I was not popular with the all-male OTF Executive, because I did not agree with their anti-women decision. I emailed the ITF, and proudly gained funds for our 2015 Fed Cup Team. 2015 was the 1st year our Fed Cup Team played since 2004. Our men played Davis Cup those 10 years, but our stronger women received no money to play. I did not seek OTF Executive re-election. I thought gender discrimination against women from 15 nations would end, but OTF inequality is worse today. As the first ITF Pacific Oceania Development Officer (1991-2011), I know the OTF story from the beginning.”

DAN O'CONNELL SORE POINT NO. 2
NO FEMALE COACHES FOR FED CUP/BJK CUP TEAMS

Dan continues, “Learning the OTF gender nonsense continued for 10 more years, something had to be done. Twice in 2024, ABC (Australia National Radio) conducted gender interviews. Will Billy Jean King support these facts: (1) women from 15 nations received less than 25% of ITF senior funds since 2005, with men gaining 75%, (2) the OTF did not elect a woman OTF Fed Cup / BJK Cup Captain since 2004, and elected only one woman team selector since 1995, and (3) from 2001-2022, the OTF Executive agreed to invite 8 men coaches, and not one woman coach to Spain, to attend advanced ITF coaching courses. Is this treatment fair?

Since 2021, it is strange that five women OTF Executives have not objected to anti-woman selections, or zero funds for women. Would Australia and New Zealand women accept two decades of unfair treatment that Pacific Oceania women have received? Why do the OTF Executive women allow this unfairness?” 

“Without transparency, the OTF Executive gender problems grow worse. Is the ITF turning a blind eye until the soft-spoken 5 OTF Executive women speak, to end this inequality? Pacific Oceania players, coaches and national associations live in the inequality. Without transparency, integrity is questioned.

ITF budgets show men's teams received $20,000 in 2021, 2022 and 2023 ($60,000). OTF women did not protest when strong women teams received $0. Last year, the BJK Cup Captain felt he must resign over two years of paying men, but not his players. The OTF Executive did not defend the BJK Captain. Later, OTF women re-elected ten-year anti-women selector friends from Vanuatu, Australia and New Zealand. 

After 30 years of ITF development, why can’t the ITF ask the OTF to allow future “Pacific Oceania” teams to be selected by Pacific Oceania officials, not New Zealand / Australia OTF officials? Can Pacific Oceania women coaches select women's teams, and Pacific Oceania men coaches select men's teams? This allows ITF class “C” nations a chance to grow their game, replacing the dominating Australia and New Zealand selectors, who led a decade of gender unfairness, and boldly made one-sided team selection mistakes.

DAN O'CONNELL SORE POINT NO. 3
RETURNING UNUSED FUNDS INSTEAD OF SPENDING THEM ON TENNIS (LIKE WOMEN’S TENNIS)

Budget transparency is missing. Like Pacific Oceania women coaches are intentionally excluded, are ITF class “C” nations excluded from a generous ITF $1.4 million budget? Do 7 ten-court nations receive less than 1% of value from our unbalanced budget? Can these 7 nations receive 2% in a rebalanced budget? Our training centre is in Australia and the new ITF “Pacific Oceania” Development Officer is now based in New Zealand. The ITF budget is named: “Pacific Oceania Assistance”. Are Australia / New Zealand costs now mixed into our 2022 budget? The “World Tennis Number” cost us $206,000, but aren’t $180,000 or more Australia / New Zealand costs? $140,000 of 2022 budget funds were not spent. Should unspent Pacific Oceania funds always be lost to our region, or instead spent to include 7 under-funded nations? 

DAN O'CONNELL SORE POINT NO. 4
THE ITF MOVED THE FIJI-BASED REGIONAL TRAINING CENTER TO AUSTRALIA (not gender bias-related)

Rajiv Singh, the 2023 President of Tennis Fiji wrote, “During a recent visit to the Sports Council, it came as a surprise that the OTF Executive did not contact me (Tennis Fiji), about closing the (Regional) Training Centre.  Furthermore, I explained Fiji has hosted over 100 regional events at the Training Centre since the 1990’s, and while we are the only Pacific Oceania nation to fund the Training Centre, we are excluded from the OTF decision-making process.  The Sports Council finds it odd that OTF Executive members from three or four nations, who have hosted only a handful of regional events in 30 years, decide without Fiji’s point of view, if or if not the Training Centre will continue. Dr. Robin Mitchell played an instrumental role in building the RTC (1999).  The Fiji Government proudly provided the region, a rent-free facility for 10 years.  In fairness to Tennis Fiji, all Pacific Oceania nations may be unaware that since 2009, most of Fiji’s sponsorship funds did not focus on Fiji, but instead promoted regional programs.  Fiji pays over F$20,000 annually to assist regional events, instead of using these funds to help Fiji attend the Pacific Games.  The ITF I believe is aware we lost money promoting regional events, yet they still expected Fiji to provide more, while they provided less.  Our steadfast commitment was undeniably beneficial to all, was recognized and appreciated for its true value to many, so why this sudden unexpected conclusion by the ITF and OTF?”

MY TAKEAWAY

I agree with Ken Thomas who suggested that the Oceania Tennis Federation, primarily dominated by New Zealand, has made critical decisions that have significantly hindered the growth of tennis across the 15 independent nations in the South Pacific region. These decisions, which have far-reaching consequences for the sport's development, were implemented without consulting or considering input from any of the affected South Pacific nations.

In regards to the closing down of the ITF Junior Training Center in Fiji, Ken calls is truly a "beacon" for the growth and development of junior tennis throughout the South Pacific Region. And again, they made this decision with no input from the Fiji Tennis Federation. 

This unilateral approach to decision-making has created a substantial barrier to the sport's expansion and popularity in these countries. The lack of representation and collaboration in the decision-making process has led to strategies that may not adequately address the unique challenges and opportunities present in South Pacific tennis communities.

Ken knows the situation better than me because I believe he reported once from the Fiji Open held at that Regional Training Center. He calls it a “slap in the face to the Fijian people and the Fijian government.”

There is also evidence of systematic gender bias against women's tennis, in light of the decisions the OTF has made over the years. Dan actually calls it  "OTF gender inequality is an international scandal” and I agree. And I assume that none of the women at the OTF is strong enough to oppose any of the men’s decisions and are being constantly ”put in their place.” Sad. I hope Billie Jean King is reading our story.