• Women
• Sport
• Exercise

The ‘manel’—all-male panel1—in sport and exercise medicine/physiotherapy is a powerful and visible symbol of gender inequality.2 The ‘manel’ normalises the absence of women leaders (role models),3 erodes women’s confidence and ambition2 and stunts the depth and development of sport and exercise medicine/physiotherapy.3 To combat this, the British Journal of Sports Medicine (BJSM) developed its conference ‘stamp of approval’,4 which requires more than 40% women faculty and scientific committee members. Perhaps the best example of a ‘manel’ elimination strategy is affirmative action by the International Federation of Sports Physical Therapy (IFSPT). IFSPTs’ intentional efforts to ‘walk the walk’ resulted in the proportion of women speakers rising from 14% (2017) to 53% (2022).5 Despite these meaningful steps, the ‘manel’ is stubborn and defiant. A recent review of sport and exercise medicine/physiotherapy conference speakers reveals that many organisations could learn from the BJSM and IFSPT examples.

Organisations often claim barriers to speaker gender equity, but deliberate and thoughtful planning can overcome these barriers. We provide examples of intentional strategies that relate to women (figure 1), but also apply to other equity-deserving groups.