11-year-old Skateboarder Zheng Haohao, the youngest Olympian! Reflecting on the Olympic Games: A Journey of Memories, Insights, and Gender Equality

I had the incredible opportunity to one of the volunteer during the Paris Olympic Games—an experience that was as thrilling as it was thought-provoking. Watching these world-class athletes, particularly in gymnastics and swimming, brought back a flood of personal memories.

My own daughter was a swimming champion in France and Austria, and I couldn’t help but get emotional as I watched the French rhythmic gymnastics team perform, recalling the many years we spent nurturing her dreams.

I’ve been fortunate to live in a small town, Bois-Colombes(Population 28K), where young athletes have ample opportunities to excel. However, a recent conversation with my daughter opened my eyes to the hidden struggles many young athletes face. She shared how, at just five years old, her gymnastics coach told her she was "too heavy" to continue because she was participating in three other sports. It’s heartbreaking to realize how much-unrecognized abuse exists in youth sports, even as we see champions like Simone Biles courageously speak out against it.

At the age of 10, we were suggested?to concentrate solely on swimming. My daughter was born into a sports family?her father Marc Bassis was the first Karate champion in Europe. She continued to excel but was severely injured which stopped her swimming career.

One of the most exhilarating moments of the Paris?Games for me was watching the women's skateboard competition and watching the youngest athlete in Olympic history?11-year-old skateboarder Zheng Haohao.?On her last Olympic run Haoha fell 3 times but got up with a smile and so much courage.

And to think, she only took up the sport five years ago at 6 years old , soaring through the rankings to earn her spot at the Olympics.?Haohao Zheng represented China during the?2024 Paris Games?and was the youngest Olympian athlete competing in the world. She is 26th in the World Skateboarding Ranking.

I was so fortunate after the match to speak with Haohoa her English was remarkablele?matched only by her kindness I already saw a great women leader even at 11 years old.

I know what I am talking about as WWIRE World Women in Real Estate has over 20K women leaders in real estate throughout the world.

This encounter made me reflect on how a country like India, with a population of 1.4 billion, managed to win only six medals, while the United States, with 380 million people, came in second overall. The challenges these athletes face are immense, and as a volunteer, I saw first hand how their journeys—and those of their parents—differ greatly, yet all underscore the profound importance of sports.

For the past decade, I’ve dedicated my efforts to promoting women leaders in real estate with WWIRE, a sector valued by 第一太平戴维斯 at over $379.7 trillion globally.

?Yet, when I think about the 3 billion women in developing countries who will never have the opportunity to participate in sports, let alone dream of the Olympics, I’m deeply troubled. Many of these women live without basic necessities like electricity and water, while the world spends hundreds of billions on wars.

A WWIRE member, Chhaya Mathur Saint Ramon , compared Women Entrepreneurs to Olympians, noting that they work just as hard on all fronts.

This year for the first time in history, the Olympics achieved gender parity among athletes for the first time. However, the number of medals won by women highlights?217 metals out of 529 metals.?

As we look to the future, let’s consider how we can harness the power of sports to promote peace and create more opportunities for women worldwide.

The Olympic Games also brought moments of deep reflection. Hearing and men during the ceremonies reminded me of the urgent need for change and the critical role women play in creating a better future.

According to the McKinsey report, achieving gender parity in the economy could add up to $28 trillion, or 26%, to annual global GDP by 2025. This impact is equivalent to the size of the combined Chinese and US economies today. Even in a “best in region” scenario, where all countries match the progress of the fastest-improving nation in their region, we could see an additional $12 trillion added to the global economy by 2025.

The 2024 Paris Olympics marked a significant milestone, being the first Games to achieve full gender parity, with an equal number of male and female athletes competing. Despite this equality in participation, the distribution of medals varied between men and women. Women won a total of 217?medals, compared to 312? by men, with an additional 20 mixed-gender events. The United States led in both men's and women's medal counts, but women secured a greater share of the total in countries like Australia and the Netherlands, where female athletes won the majority of their nation’s medals.

This balance reflects ongoing progress toward gender equity in sports but also highlights areas where disparities still exist in competitive outcomes and recognition. It was also symbolic for me?to see the two women Mayors of LA Karen Bass and Paris Mayor Mme Anne Hidalgo reminding us of the strides women are making in leadership roles across the world.?

As we continue to work toward gender equality, both in sports and in the professional world, I am hopeful that we can create a future where all women, regardless of their circumstances, have the opportunity to pursue their dreams.

Special thanks to Dr Cristina LUNGHI who has put in place ARBORUS and the label GEIS Gender Equality International standard

?Anne Ravanona founder of Global Invest Her

Poonam Barua founder of Forum for Women in Leadership - WILL Forum India

Ayumi Moore Aoki founder of WOMEN IN TECH ? Global

Catherine Guyot founder of LA FEMME ARCHITECTE

Kristin Engvig founder of WIN Women

Ingrid Vanderveldt, M. Arch, MBA founder of EBW Empowering a Billion Women

Mirela Sula founder of Global Woman Club Amsterdam

Dr Sylvia Forchap Likambi founder of Global Visionary Women Network

and most importantly Tony Estanguet Paris 2024 - Comité d'organisation des Jeux Olympiques et Paralympiques de 2024

and so many other great women and men around the world breaking the Glass Ceiling

and to all the young girls please GO FOR YOUR DREAMS! IMAGINE

Call me or write if you want to be in our next newsletter.

Kindness, Peace and Sisterhood

Janicka Bassis

Founder WWIRE World Women in Real Estate

Linkedin Group

CEO & Founder W.W.I.R.E

World Women Impacting Real Estate

+33760352001