Jodie Ounsley calls on schools to build on success of Women’s Rugby World Cup
Gladiators star issues plea over Women’s Rugby World Cup
- Jodie Ounsley, the former England rugby international and Gladiators star, has urged British schools to build on the success of the Women's Rugby World Cup.
- Ounsley noted a significant shift in how women's rugby is perceived, following the record 42,723 attendance and 2.4 million peak BBC viewers for England's opening match.
- She emphasised the crucial role schools play in encouraging young girls to participate, recalling her own experience of being told girls do not play rugby.
- Ounsley hopes the tournament will inspire more children to take up the sport, drawing parallels to the positive impact of the Lionesses' success in football.
- She believes her role in Gladiators and the ongoing rugby tournament are both helping to challenge outdated ideas about women's strength and physicality in sport.