At first glance, Johanna Talihärm and Mathilde Hougaard Boesen appear to have little in common. Johanna is an Estonian biathlete, a four-time Olympian and recently elected member of the International Olympic Committee’s Athletes’ Commission. Mathilde, from Denmark, serves on the board of the Danish Orienteering Federation while balancing her voluntary leadership role alongside a full-time career as a journalist.
Their sports are different. Their career paths are different. Even their routes into leadership could hardly be more different. Yet both women share a strikingly similar motivation: they stepped forward because they saw things that needed to change.
“I don’t remember making a conscious decision to pursue a career in sports governance as such,” Johanna reflects. “I saw something that I wanted to change, somewhere I thought I could make an impact.”
That sentiment resonates strongly with Mathilde’s experience. After growing up in the orienteering community, she witnessed challenges that she felt were driving people away from the sport, particularly young women. Joining the federation’s board became a way to influence decisions and help shape a more inclusive future.
For both women, leadership emerged not from ambition for status, but from a desire to improve the environment around them.
Seeing what others don’t
Like many biathletes, Johanna’s journey started as a cross-country skier before a coach encouraged her to try shooting. Years later, she has competed at the highest level of international sport and now represents athletes in some of the world’s most influential sporting institutions.
When she first entered elite sport, she did not immediately recognise the inequalities around her. “As a young athlete, I didn’t really think about it,” she says. “You are just trying to find your place.”
Only later did she begin to notice how few people around decision-making tables looked like her or could relate to her experiences.
Mathilde describes a similar process of observation. In orienteering, she saw a culture that often expected complete commitment. The sport was not simply a hobby. For many participants it became a lifestyle that shaped weekends, holidays and social circles.
While she values that passion, she also began to wonder whether the sport was unintentionally excluding people. “Why can’t it also be something you do once a week?” she asks. “Why should people feel they have to dedicate their entire lives to participate?”
Mathilde became particularly concerned about young women leaving the sport because they felt they could not meet those expectations. Rather than accepting the situation, she decided to help change it.
Why representation matters
Although their experiences differ, both women arrive at the same conclusion when discussing women in leadership. For Johanna, the issue is not simply about fairness. It is about effectiveness.
Research consistently shows that diverse leadership teams make better decisions. Different perspectives challenge assumptions, broaden discussions and improve outcomes. “If we are not including women, we are missing out on fifty per cent of society,” Johanna says. “We’re only using half of the potential.”
Mathilde makes a similar argument. Women make up half the population and are affected by the same decisions as men. Yet too often, she observes, major decisions continue to be made without equal female representation. “How can we create an environment where everyone feels welcome if everyone is not represented?” she asks.
For both of them, representation is not symbolic. It directly affects the quality of decisions, policies and organisational culture.
Changing the culture of sport
Neither woman believes sport can afford to stand still. Johanna argues that sporting organisations must evolve alongside society. Successful systems can easily become attached to established ways of working. But preserving the status quo can also mean missing opportunities for growth.
“The world is constantly changing,” she says. “We need to make sure sport keeps up with those changes.”
Mathilde’s vision is similarly focused on accessibility. She wants sporting environments that welcome different levels of participation and different life circumstances. Her goal is not to reduce commitment for those who want it, but to ensure that commitment is not the only acceptable path. The principle is simple: sport should adapt to people, not the other way around.
The barriers that remain
Despite progress, both women acknowledge that obstacles still exist. Johanna points to the importance of visible role models. Seeing women in leadership positions sends a powerful message to younger generations that such roles are attainable.
Mathilde highlights another challenge: the internal doubt that many women experience.
She describes it as a “parrot on your shoulder”, a constant voice questioning whether you are knowledgeable enough, capable enough or ready enough. Overcoming those doubts matters, she says, but so does recognising that the issue is larger than individual confidence.
Creating equality requires broader conversations about how organisations and societies are structured, whose voices are heard and whose perspectives are valued. There is no single solution. Change requires action on multiple fronts.
Small steps, big outcomes
When asked what she would tell her younger self, Johanna’s advice is simple: keep taking small steps. “You can achieve things that you cannot even imagine as a ten-year-old,” she says.
It is a fitting conclusion to both women’s stories.
Neither Johanna nor Mathilde set out with a master plan to become sports leaders. Instead, they noticed problems, questioned assumptions and chose to act. Their journeys suggest that leadership is not always about seeking power or position. Sometimes it begins with a simple belief: things could be better. And then deciding to do something about it.