AFLW star and The Female Athlete Project founder Chloe Dalton has launched a new YouTube series called Everyone's Game that takes her female athlete storytelling platform to the next level.
Featuring interviews with professional athletes like cricketer Elyse Perry and healthcare practitioners like breath work expert Lynsey Chan, Everyone’s Game tackles issues unique to female athletes when it comes to maintaining their best form while participating in sports.
It's an extremely timely series, particularly off the back of the Paris Olympics and Paralympics - where Australian female athletes dominated.
So what inspired Chloe to make Everyone's Game? "The Female Athlete Project has been all about increasing the visibility of women in sport, through providing a place to share their stories and achievements," Chloe tells Missing Perspectives.
"To me, this series is about a natural progression from storytelling to getting into the details around what are some of the prominent issues that uniquely impact women in sports. I hope that it helps to open conversations for women at all levels of sport, about issues that they may not have felt comfortable speaking out about in the past."
In one episode, AFLW player Maddy Collier's talks through the challenges of returning to professional sports post-ACL injury - in a climate where ACL injuries of female athletes were brought to the forefront after Matildas star Sam Kerr experienced a devastating blow earlier this year.
"While I haven’t torn an ACL myself, I’ve unfortunately been through my fair share of injuries. It was really interesting to sit and chat with Maddy about her experience, and I think athletes have an automatic sense of empathy and understanding around what it feels like when something you have worked so hard for is taken away in an instant," Chloe says.
"What struck me was this reflection Maddy had around could I have done ’this’ differently, or maybe not gone for the ball or made a certain tackle, but that she made the choice not to do that. To accept that sport, particularly a sport like footy, does come with its risks, and that in part is the beauty of what we get to do."
Not many people know, but Chloe herself is currently recovering from back surgery. "This injury isn’t something I have spoken about publicly a lot, and I’ve even struggled to chat to family and friends about it. I’ve almost been in denial about having to go in for back surgery again, and just feel absolutely devastated to miss the entire AFLW season," she says.
"I’m at the point where I don’t feel like I can learn more from injuries, or ‘everything happens for a reason’ or seeing the silver lining in it. I hope that doesn’t come across too morbid, but I want to be honest about where I’m at and the toll it’s taken on my mental health. I am really relieved that I went ahead with the surgery, and it has significantly reduced the amount of pain I was in from the disc bulge. I hope that this injury and those I’ve gone through before continue to develop a deeper level of empathy for other people experiencing hardship, not just in sport but hopefully in all walks of life."
She shares some advice for female athletes recovering from injuries and preparing for a return to professional sport. "It’s ok to feel the emotions of what you have lost. I think sometimes we are too quick to try and reset our goals without properly processing what we may have lost out on," Chloe shares. "I think once you are in a headspace to start your rehab journey, I have always found so much support and motivation through other athletes or teammates going through the rehab process at the same time. It doesn’t have to be the same injury, but I think there’s often and unspoken understanding of how it feels."
In terms of upcoming episodes of Everyone's Game, there's a particular episode that Chloe is excited to share. "I’m really looking forward to the postpartum return to sport chat with Gretel Bueta and women’s health physio Lyz Evans. We’ve seen so many incredible athletes like Gretel return to elite sport after giving birth, often forging their own path and recovery timelines with their medical team. I think it’s so important to spotlight these stories, while having the contribution of an expert like Lyz allows the content to be applicable for women looking to return to sport at a grassroots level, or even to return to their daily exercise."
One thing is clear: whether you're a professional athlete, sports fan, or someone curious about the experiences of female athletes - Everyone's Game is a hugely important and much needed series that will contribute significantly to discussions around moving women's sports forward.
Everyone’s Game is now available to stream on the Kayo Sports YouTube channel.