Clio takes part in weekly surf lessons. Photo / Sean Joyce
Clio Joyce is in the ocean. She stands up on her surfboard, feels the air, feels the salt spray. It is her favourite thing.
But the 11-year-old isn't like other surfers. Clio is deaf but can't wear hearing aids in the sea. So when people scream her name, she cannot hear. She is in the moment, free in the ocean.
But she doesn't let her hearing loss get in the way of her love for surfing.
Clio is one of many sharing their story as part of Sport New Zealand's #itsmymove campaign, which aims to address declining physical activity levels in teenage girls.
Research carried out by Sport New Zealand shows by the age of 16 there is a 17 per cent gap between male and female participation in sport and recreation in New Zealand. By the age of 17 this jumps to 28 per cent.
It shows 90 per cent of young women want to be active and 96 per cent understand why it's important for them - but there are clear contributing factors to the drop in numbers including body image, judgment, time pressures, motivation and the loss of fun.
The campaign aims to raise awareness of the reasons behind the participation gap, equipping parents and activity providers with strategies to better support teenage girls.
For Clio, lip-reading, teaching her instructor sign language and constantly being aware have made surfing without hearing aids easier.
"It's always been my dream to be surfing. When I was two I saw someone surfing, and I was like 'wow!' I talked about it all the time, and at Christmas I got a surfboard."
The Mount Maunganui Primary student is also a confident roller skater and loves playing rugby and soccer at school.
"I know how to do the tricks and drop in on the mini ramp. You can hear everything and do heaps of fun stuff."
It has taken years for Clio to feel comfortable playing sports at school but now she always makes sure she gets involved.
"I play with my friends and I try my best. It took years for me to play sport with the boys and girls - it's really hard."
She is encouraging other girls who love sport but feel shy or discluded to organise their own activities.
"If I see any girl trying to do sport but can't I always have to try to help," she says.
"It doesn't matter if you are deaf, or if you are a girl - you will always figure out a way."
Tauranga Girls' College Year 13 student Molly Cachemaille has seen the drop in sports participation first hand.
"When we first came into college there were so many girls getting involved.
"As we got older so many girls stopped doing sport and PE and started focusing on other interests. There aren't many girls playing sport any more, which is quite sad."
The 17-year-old, who is the school's deputy head of sport, says a lack of motivation, body confidence and study pressure are contributing factors.
"As you get older you just become less motivated to do things - and body confidence is also a big one because girls are stereotyped a lot."
To boost engagement levels Molly wants to see a change in how other teenage girls view sport.
"Sport should be categorised as less competitive. When girls think of sport they just think of competition and winning. It should be about having fun - it doesn't have to be so high-intensity."
Meanwhile, a newly created role at Sports Bay of Plenty is helping advocate and create further opportunities for girls and women in the region.
The organisation identified a "need" within the community to have a dedicated person to focus on sport and recreation for females.
Melanie Giles, who started the newly created job in January, says part of her work involves helping sports clubs and schools increase the involvement of female participants.
"Local sports clubs have approached me around how to initiate more girls and women's activities - and how to make them fun, safe and inclusive."
Giles says "girls only" groups and activities have proved successful for sports clubs looking to bring in more female participants.
"Our young women all have similar fears around body image, self-confidence and giving it a go," she says.
"A lot of young women want to be active but some of those barriers of being in environments where they are judged, or their body image, has stopped them.
"Doing girls-only groups has really helped encourage girls who wouldn't normally get involved in sport get involved."
She says it is important for schools to "listen to young people" and find out what type of activities students want to take part in.
"Some schools may not be offering what young women would like to do. It's really about giving them that voice."
Taska Kemp,15, says uniform requirements have influenced her choice of what sport to play.
Much of Taska's time after school is spent playing basketball or volleyball but years ago she was also keen to join a netball team.
Eventually, she decided against it because she was told that to play she would need to wear a dress.
"I wanted to start quite a while ago, but I decided to not because they all wore little skimpy dresses that I didn't want to wear," she says.
"I just found it a bit stupid - there was no reason for me not to be able to wear something else."
Aside from this, she says playing sport brings her a sense of community and the opportunity to meet new people while doing something she loves.
The Otumoetai College student started playing basketball in primary school and joined a volleyball team in Year 9.
"I just love the sports I play - you get that sense of happiness and a safe place to do what you love doing."
Lack of information and awareness about how to get involved in sport is another barrier for girls her age, she says.
"There is so much out there - but often people don't know how to go about doing it. They can't be bothered to find out themselves- so they just don't play."
Bay of Plenty rollerskating coach Ivy Bates is helping remove barriers for girls and teenagers by ensuring they feel confident at the skatepark.
The founder of Let's Roll Coaching runs in-school and afternoon lessons across Rotorua, Whakatāne and Tauranga - seeing the most interest from young girls aged 10 to 13.
She says learning to roller-skate and roller-blade teaches children balance, agility, strength and self-belief.
And teaching skatepark etiquette makes it easier for young girls who are eager to learn the sport, she said.
Bates says there are often "a lot" of males at the skatepark and she has observed moments where girls learning to skate felt intimidated by children on scooters.
"We do find they try and threaten you," she says.
"My coaching is about teaching the girls skills to feel confident enough to go to the skatepark and pick a space and say 'I am here'.
"It's about building up the confidence to know we are allowed to be here."
She has witnessed a transformation in multiple students who initially felt too shy to skate in these spaces - and now could comfortably navigate the often busy environment.
"It's about women helping other women and showing them we can be part of these spaces as well," she said.
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