This time last year Fay Henderson had just completed her age grade sporting career by skipping a Scotland team to the World Junior Curling Championship title.
As International Women’s Day 2024 comes around with a theme of ‘Inspire Inclusion’, the 21-year-old from Dumfries exemplifies the benefits of that approach having been supported in her successful graduation into the senior game by some of her country’s greatest female athletes.
The new team she led to victory at this year’s Scottish Women’s Curling Championships includes 2022 Olympic gold medallist Hailey Duff, while their progress was given an added push in mid-season when Duff’s skip at the Winter Olympics in Beijing, four-time Olympian Eve Muirhead, was appointed to coach them.
“Having Hailey in my team is great, because she has reached the goal that so many of us want in becoming an Olympic gold medallist,” said Henderson.
“It’s just inspiring to know that there’s women out there who are able to achieve and then still keep it going to achieve other goals in the sport as well.
“That is great to have and being able to tap into the knowledge and experience of Eve Muirhead as our coach, when she is the best GB curler of all time and definitely the name that everyone recognises in Scotland and across the UK as well, has brought so much to the team.
“By being clear and direct with what the plan is to follow when she has been in every situation and knows exactly how we feel and how to get the best out of the situation is invaluable.”
However, she also noted that Muirhead is by no means the only role model available to them within the British Curling programme.
“There are a lot of women in the programme - between coaching staff and support staff - that are able to help,” said Henderson.
“It is nice to have them around us to help support us and I think that within curling there are visible opportunities for women to work alongside other athletes in mixed doubles and mixed curling, while there are also opportunities to showcase their own abilities in the women’s game at Europeans and World Championships.”
Those include a relatively new recruit in Jo Butterfield, who won Paralympic gold in athletics before switching sports two years ago and, in spite of having been sidelined this season after being diagnosed with cancer, showed her continuing commitment to the British Curling team ethic when she turned up at the recent national championships.
“Jo Butterfield is a great inspiration within our sport to so many people out there, too,” said Henderson.
“She has a Paralympic gold medal and is working towards another in a winter sport and whilst she might be off-ice at the moment she still travelled to the Scottish Champs in Dumfries to support all of us.
“It was so great to see that nice familiar face and that lovely smile and to feel that support. It meant a lot to us to see her still supporting curling and also showing her love of the sport.
“She is so inspiring and one of the women out there in the programme that works really hard for a lot of things to achieve her goals and she doesn’t let anything get her down.
“Being around and working alongside athletes like Jo shows they are regular people that just want to do things a bit different to a 9 to 5 job and I think that takes a lot of guts too, because a lot of the time when it is not going well it is hard to hear a lot of people asking ‘Have you not won anything recently,’”
Henderson knows, too, that making such rapid progress in her sport would have been much more difficult without the level of support she has had as a result of being part of a successful Olympic programme.
“The investment from British Curling has definitely contributed to my upward trajectory in my career,” she said.
“Obviously the programme is the best place to be to become a successful elite curler with all of the support services, support staff and funding that comes with that.
“Last year in particular throughout the season, being part of the podium squad has definitely helped, having that extra time in the National Curling Academy and the daytime training and the extra gym work has I feel helped.
“Having more time to spend with your team every week has also been beneficial so I think that has all played a part and we progressed individually and as a team.
“Making that transition from junior curling to women’s curling has been more challenging but something we have been prepared for and towards the end of the season we managed that little bit better by getting that good performance and winning the Scottish title.”
Young as she is, then, Henderson is already aware that she has a responsibility to help the next tranche of up and coming athletes to maximise their talent.
“Seeing all the great curlers in the programme shine on the international stage, inspires you that little bit more and you want to emulate that,” she said.
“I also like to think anyone at any level would enjoy being part of the curling community and embrace the opportunities within it.
“Winning is definitely part of my enjoyment but there is a lot more to it, from the support at ice rinks and from other women’s teams as well.
“I hope that I may help create a legacy and be someone to look up to, as I have had so many good female role models in this sport and that is ultimately what you need.
“When you think ‘Ooh, I’d like to have a world championship title and would like to go to the next Olympics’, there are a lot of people within our programme like Eve who provide that great example and I hope I can be like that and inspire that next generation of girls.”
#InternationalWomensDay #curling #IWD2024 #inspireinclusion
Images: Team GB /David Pearce, ParalympicsGB, World curling, Scottish Curling
