Eilidh Gibson, our Athlete Programmes & Relationship Manager, reflects on the first ninety days of Unlocked. A phase defined by connection, purpose, and the unique opportunity that emerges when female athletes come together through this programme.
It’s been ninety days, give or take, since Unlocked 4 became a reality. Ninety days – we’ve only just started, right? And yet, realising that this already marks a quarter of the way through the programme makes time feel as though it’s racing by. Looking at things differently has been a theme over these past few months as I approach the Unlocked Programme from a completely new perspective: no longer an athlete in awe of the opportunities but rather, someone whose role is to create those opportunities and those moments of connection which I naively thought were chance.
This phase of Unlocked has been centred on two things: purpose and connection.
Connection, at its core, has been about bringing together athletes with different stories, backgrounds, and ambitions, and supporting the growth of a genuine community. Community is built with intention, not by accident; and crucially, it’s never a ‘one‑size‑fits‑all’ process.
Our launch event – filled with opportunities to connect, share experiences, and be vulnerable – created the magic I associate so distinctly with Unlocked. Athletes bonded over shared experiences and, though each is at a different point on their advocacy journey, there was a clear kinship in knowing that everyone wants to make a difference. As Sophie Power, Unlocked athlete, ultrarunner, author, and founder of SheRACES, put it far more eloquently than I can: “It just makes me feel so much less alone, that I’ve got allies,” she says. “I’ve never felt that before.”
The Power of Connection
Since the launch, connection has, intentionally, been in different forms. Through our online hangouts, we’ve created spaces where athletes have opened up to the group about their “athlete story,” and those moments have helped the group bond over shared experience. Although we as staff don’t sit in on the breakout rooms, the athletes always return with plenty to feed back – rarely on task, which I take as the strongest possible sign that real connections are forming.
In a world where we can connect with one another so easily, it feels as though people are simultaneously craving that increasingly rare in‑person time. With that in mind, I’ve made a conscious effort to meet athletes face‑to‑face whenever possible. These on-the-road coffee catch-ups have been filled with the joy of genuine connection, whether it be meeting an athlete 1:1, bringing a group together or a recent Edinburgh catch-up with athletes from three different Unlocked cohorts.
Every time I’m with Unlocked athletes, there’s an instant connection born from a fundamental understanding of one another’s experience, followed quickly by that familiar feeling of awe at the brilliance gathered around a single coffee table. Selfishly for me perhaps, these hot drinks, funny chats, and genuine connection fill my cup to the brim. I’m proud that in this first quarter, where connection was our priority, total athlete contact time has been split almost exactly 50:50 between virtual and in‑person. Not bad for a small organisation whose staff live four hundred miles apart!
Understanding Purpose
The purpose strand of the last ninety days has centred on supporting athletes to better understand both their own ambitions and the industry they are operating within. Through more formal webinars, we’ve explored diverse perspectives and accessed expert insight from leaders across the sector, including BBC Sport, Sky Sports and This Woman Runs.
While the past few months have involved me stepping behind the curtain of the Unlocked programme itself, the aim of our expert sessions has always been to give athletes their own glimpse behind the curtain of the wider industry. From understanding how a grassroots community organisation can grow into an international charity, to gaining insight into female athlete visibility from major broadcasters, these conversations matter. When athletes understand how the industry works, they gain greater agency to navigate it and shape their own path within it.
Connecting athletes to this knowledge, and directly to the people shaping the landscape, is a core part of the “unlocking”. We kicked off the programme hoping athletes would be inspired by one another as much as by external voices. But it is through these insights and relationships that inspiration starts to shift into intention, and intention into action.
On to the next 90 days…
Unlocked may be in its fourth iteration, but these athletes are not replicas of those who came before. Nor is the landscape of women’s sport static. It is evolving – commercially, culturally and politically – and our responsibility is to evolve alongside it. For me, that requires accountability; to see each cohort as distinct, to meet our athletes exactly where they are, and to hold space for individual ambition while navigating collective momentum. Because ultimately, the Unlocked Programme is only as strong as our ability to listen.
The next stage of the programme is centred on stimulating ideas and generating opportunities. With the excitement of the Athlete-Activator Event just around the corner, I’m looking forward to the opportunity of widening the Unlocked community and using the foundation we’ve built as a launchpad for athletes to shape their own pathways and pursue opportunities with clarity and confidence. Stay tuned, I truly believe the best is yet to come.
Thanks to a grant from the Jacobs Futura Foundation, the Women’s Sport Trust launched a new Unlocked programme in November 2025. This funding supports not only the latest cohort, but also strengthens our growing community of 111 athlete alumni. Find our more about the Unlocked programme here.