Celebrating mother’s day with triple Olympian Louise Bawden

Mother’s day is an opportunity to thank all the mum’s out there, who we know are a key support to those who take part in our sport, young and old.

Triple Olympian Louise Bawden is preparing to celebrate her first mother’s day with son Parker, and while she has stepped down from her playing career there is no slowing down for Bawden.

On top of her important role as a mum, Bawden was recently announced as a member of the first-ever FIVB Athlete’s Commission as well as part of the IOC’s Believe in Sport campaign.

As she prepares for Mother’s Day, Bawden reflects on the important role of families in supporting athletes on their journey.

“Obviously when you’re an athlete family support is critical. Family support was pivotal in my career particularly the support from my parents from an early age,” said Bawden.

“Simple things made a difference, like being taken to my commitments, mum getting up early to make packed lunches for us and driving us from sport to sport while we had a nap.”

Bawden said as a mum she’ll be encouraging her son to make the most of what sport has to offer.

‘We will be encouraging him to be involved in sport as there are a lot of things you learn from sport for your development including self-esteem, emotional development, how to win and lose, compromise, how to take direction and live through difficult times.”

While there are many lessons Bawden has been able to take from her sporting career into her life post playing, there are new lessons she has been able to learn as mum. And her advice to all the mum’s out there is one of kindness.

“Be kind to yourself. It is easy to be very hard on yourself, as a new mum I have high expectations on who I want to be for my son and my family, most importantly enjoy the moments, be present and be kind to yourself,” said Bawden.

To all the mum’s out there, happy Mother’s Day!