Gender representation and policy implementation in the governance of international Paralympic organizations

The purpose of this chapter is to explore the extent to which international Paralympic organizations are proactive and successful in implementing actions to increase female representation across their governance teams and positions. We present comparative quantitative data on gender representation trends and the prevalence of gender equity policy across international Paralympic organizations (n = 8) and international Olympic organizations (n = 48). Our findings highlight that women remain marginal group members within international Paralympic organizations, as well as that Paralympic organizations are significantly less proactive in implementing gender and governance actions than their Olympic counterparts. We draw upon scholarship that explores organizational sources of non-compliance with governance policy, as well as Cohen’s (1999) concept of secondary marginalization, to explore the reasons why women continue to face marginalization within organizations that form part of a marginalized community. Our discussion centers around two key factors: 1) differences in top-down gender and governance policy within the Paralympic and Olympic Movements, and 2) intersections between ableism and patriarchy within the governance of the Paralympic Movement