Women Coaches Symposium | Women Coaches Symposium

Sport Bigs Launches World's First Toy Line Exclusively Dedicated to Women's Sports

Plush toys are the first step in a larger mission to inspire greater fan engagement and investment in women’s sports.

Minneapolis, Minnesota — Sport Bigs™, the newest company to disrupt the $1.25 billion U.S. plush toy industry, today announced the world’s first talking toy line dedicated to athletes in women’s sports.

On a mission to literally change the face of sports, Sport Bigs is launching with a series of celebrity-inspired 18-inch plush toys celebrating only women’s sports. But the company’s true mission is, fittingly, even BIGGER: Change the narrative around women’s sports and reveal the true potential of their marketability.

“In the past, if you were an athlete in girls’ and women’s sports, you didn’t have many visible role models. And you certainly didn’t have a talking sports action toy that encouraged you to use your own power and voice while training like a pro athlete,” said founder Pam Kosanke, a six-time competitor in world championships across three different sports, who is also a mom and a professional marketer. “This changes all that, and so much more.”

Sport Bigs has teamed up with three incredible women’s sports legends, including five-time WNBA champion, basketball all-star and current Minnesota Lynx assistant coach Rebekkah Brunson; professional soccer legend and current soccer commentator and analyst Lori Lindsey; and four-time world champion, multi-gold medalist and current UCLA softball head coach Lisa Fernandez, to provide the likenesses and voices of the first round of Sport Bigs. Kosanke intends for that platform to add more women’s sports heroes over time.

New Program: Take a Student to Lunch

We are happy to announce our first year of the Take A Student To Lunch (TASTL) program at the Women Coaches Symposium! Although sporting world is large, there are many opportunities to become better acquainted with coaches. Sharing lunch and an informal conversation is a great way to explore career opportunities, to identify or confirm your career direction, as well as build a working relationship — an important factor when navigating early career decisions. Participating in this program gives students an opportunity to meet with coaches and receive mentorship in a friendly atmosphere. We will pair student athletes and coaches/athletic administrators together to share time together during lunch.

If you have interest in this program, as a student or coach, please fill out this form.

Please complete this form before on Wednesday, April 20th.

WCS Sponsor: Premier Sport Psychology

The past two years have been nothing short of challenging for athletes, coaches, and those in sport. As the world seemingly came to a standstill in spring of 2020, athletes and coaches grappled with the unknowns regarding their season plans. Sport psychology providers saw heightened levels of stress, anxiety, and depression for athletes and coaches alike. As a sport psychology consulting firm committed to understanding the intersection of performance and wellness, our team wanted to give athletes everything they needed to be at their best—both mentally and physically. In the fall of 2020 we launched a research project to answer one important question: What are the actions, thoughts, and feelings that athletes need to optimize mental health and performance?

2022 WCS, Jean K. Freeman Keynote Speaker Announced

We are thrilled to welcome Stephanie Wheeler, to the 2022 Women Coaches Symposium as this years Jean K. Freeman Keynote Speaker!

Stephanie Wheeler is the head coach of women’s wheelchair basketball at the University of Illinois, is a Paralympic gold medalist, World Championship gold medalist, and collegiate national champion. She was a member of the gold medal winning women’s wheelchair basketball team at both the 2004 Athens and 2008 Beijing Paralympic Games. She was also a member and co-captain of the gold medal winning 2010 world championship team that competed in Birmingham, England.

2022 WCS Registration Now Open!

Tues, 3/01/2022 - 11:56

The Tucker Center's Women Coaches Symposium is back in-person at Huntington Bank Stadium on April 22, 2022!

Registration is now open

Join us for high-quality educational programming and professional development for women coaches. This full-day women-focused event serves as an avenue for networking and provides space to build community among women coaches. Women coaches of all sports and all levels are welcome. The WCS is a LGBTQI2S+ inclusive, safe space. While the WCS is a women-focused event, we welcome male allies who support women.

Message from The Tucker Team

The Tucker Center's Women Coaches Symposium is back in-person at Huntington Bank Stadium on April 22, 2022! We have had to cancel the last two years of the WCS due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. We have aligned ourselves with the University of Minnesota, Minnesota Department of Health, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) paying particular attention to fluctuating COVID-19 transmission rates, cases, and hospitalizations. We will continue to follow and monitor the University of Minnesota's protocol to ensure we have a safe return of the WCS. To read more, please visit the COVID-19 Response page.

WCS 2020 POSTPONED DUE TO COVID-19

Thu, 03/12/2020 - 14:18

After careful consideration and consultation, and in keeping with the University of Minnesota’s guidance for dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Women Coaches Symposium (WCS) Planning Committee has made the very difficult decision to postpone the WCS for this spring. We are looking at dates in the Fall to hold the event and will communicate with you as updates unfold.

WCS 2020 & Coronavirus Impact Statement

Mon, 03/09/2020 - 08:57

We want to be proactive in planning for the 2020 Women Coaches Symposium related to the COVID-19 outbreak. We must acknowledge the uncertainty this virus is inserting into planning for April. We are considering how to best support all attendees who may find their lives disrupted by the effects of the virus.

The University of Minnesota staff members and our WCS planning committee continue to monitor COVID-19 and its impact to community members and colleagues' travel. We will keep you updated as we make decisions effecting the WCS.

Thank you for your patience and understanding.