The Gaining Ground WA Story
We’re a women-founded and led for-purpose organisation that supports girls in sport to thrive, lead and succeed.
We build the wellbeing of girls 12-16-years old playing community sport and connect players with relatable role models they can learn from and look up to.
Our Vision
Create a future in Western Australia where girls in sport are supported with wellbeing tools, role models and opportunities to thrive.
Our Mission
We partner with value-aligned organisations to deliver workshops for girls and junior girls’ coaches that empower girls with the tools to thrive, lead, and succeed in sport and in life.
Our Purpose
To create opportunities for women and girls to realise their full potential in and out of sport.
Our People
We’re women who are passionate about leadership, sport and mental wellbeing. From our homes to the classroom, yoga studio, and newsroom, we’ve experienced the need to empower young women to overcome self-doubt and build self-belief to thrive on and off the field. We’ve also experienced the transformative power of having a consistent role model in our lives.
Our Growth
2020
We first met around a club room table to share honest experiences about mental health as players and coaches and realised major mental health issues at our clubs. We weren’t mental health professionals, but we knew we needed to do more for our women and girls.
2021
We designed and facilitated a digital toolkit, Game Changers, of communication exercises for players and coaches to build mental wellbeing. We believed that if we built joy, connection, and belonging among players and teams, we could retain players, build mentors, and create female coaches. We piloted a successful program at Fremantle City Football Club with 16 teams and 180 players and empowered young women to become mentors and coaches and join leadership boards.
2022 - 2023
We evolved to Gaining Ground and incorporated as a not-for-profit to expand to clubs in Perth and Western Australia.
2024
We focused on opening up our mentorship program to sporting clubs throughout Perth to sustain participation and retain players.
2025 and 2026
We grew our reach to clubs across Perth Metropolitan through value-aligned partnerships to grow our impact.
2026
We’re building organisational capacity through operational and strategic planning to grow our reach and impact in 2027.
Annual Reports
Annual Report 2025
Our Impact 2023-2024: A letter from the Chair
Kris Marano
Founder | Executive Director
“I believe sport and storytelling are powerful drivers for social change, and there is no greater time to elevate women and girls everywhere in the world to lead in the game and in their lives.”
Kris is a communicator and storyteller with 17 years of international experience. She interviews elite athletes and Olympians about mental health and leadership. A career highlight was directing and reporting storytelling from the Invictus Games Sydney 2018 for the Official Book. She executive produced the State Library of WA story series, Game Changers: Trailblazing Stories from West Australian Women in Soccer and gave a TEDxUWA talk in December 2023 about the power of role models for women and girls in sport.
Aija
Our Facilitators
Dana
Our HQ Team
Rosemary Livermore
Company Secretary
Rosemary is an accomplished transformation and governance professional with extensive experience leading complex change initiatives in highly regulated environments, including senior roles with the Reserve Bank of Australia, Westpac, and Commonwealth Bank.
Rosemary is passionate about building cultures that support both organisational excellence and workforce development and her strategic insight, governance expertise, and commitment to community make her a valued member of the Gaining Ground WA team and board.
Lucy
Mari
Board of Directors
BOARD DIRECTOR
Christine Truscott
CHAIR OF THE BOARD
TREASURER
Tara Lyle
BOARD DIRECTOR
BOARD DIRECTOR
SS