{"id":14715,"date":"2026-03-08T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-08T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/?p=14715"},"modified":"2026-03-10T11:27:31","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T04:27:31","slug":"international-womens-day-waland-rosengren-givetogain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/whats-new\/international-womens-day-waland-rosengren-givetogain","title":{"rendered":"International Women\u2019s Day: Waland, Rosengren #GiveToGain"},"content":{"rendered":"

For Sonja Waland and Cathrine Rosengren, the theme of this year\u2019s International Women\u2019s Day \u2013 #GiveToGain \u2013 is the way they live their badminton journeys.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

One is a coach shaping champions and future coaches, the other an athlete\u00a0representing\u00a0players worldwide. Together, their stories reflect the spirit of giving back to the sport that\u00a0moulded\u00a0them.<\/span> [vc_single_image image=”14717″ img_size=”large” add_caption=”yes” alignment=”center” onclick=”link_image”][vc_column_text]A former Dutch international who speaks five languages, Waland\u2019s life was always destined to remain connected to badminton. After moving to Norway 30 years ago, coaching became a natural path for someone who had long enjoyed analysing the game\u2019s technical and tactical layers.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEven as a player I always tried to help my teammates with tips, so I got my coaching licenses early, about 25 years ago,\u201d she shares.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Her introduction to\u00a0Para badminton came six years ago through Helle Sofie\u00a0Sagoy, now the world No.1 in SL4 women\u2019s singles. What began as a simple partnership soon became something deeper.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe started from scratch,\u201d she recalls. \u201cIt has been a fantastic learning journey for both of us.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

That journey led to major milestones, including a bronze medal at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Yet Waland says the proudest part of the process is not just medals.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s\u00a0how she has developed as a person \u2013 from a quite insecure girl to a confident young woman.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The bond between them runs so deep that Waland refers to\u00a0Sagoy\u00a0as \u201cNo.4\u201d in her phone\u00a0\u2013\u00a0a nod to her three daughters.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For Waland, coaching has always been about more than results.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTo develop a player, you must see the whole person,\u201d she says. \u201cNot just technique or tactics, but the personality.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Her passion for development now extends beyond individual players. After attending the\u00a0BWF\u00a0Level 1 Tutor Course in Dubai\u00a0last year, Waland recently took charge of Norway\u2019s\u00a0Coach\u00a0Education programme, mentoring new tutors and building a stronger coaching structure nationwide.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She also continues to push for greater inclusion and opportunity in\u00a0Para badminton\u00a0\u2013\u00a0including organising Norway\u2019s first-ever training camp specifically for female players.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNone of us develops alone,\u201d Waland says. \u201cI\u2019ve\u00a0benefited\u00a0from great mentors. Giving back means the next generation will have even better opportunities.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”14718″ img_size=”large” add_caption=”yes” alignment=”center” onclick=”link_image”][vc_column_text]While Waland builds pathways from the sidelines, Rosengren is doing the same from within the athletes\u2019 ranks.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The two-time SU5 women\u2019s singles European champion\u00a0has become\u00a0a\u00a0leading voice\u00a0in her sport\u00a0after being\u00a0elected\u00a0Deputy Chair of the BWF Para Badminton Athletes\u2019 Commission.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For Rosengren, leadership began\u00a0almost by\u00a0accident.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was younger, someone suggested I run for the commission,\u201d she recalls. \u201cI had a lot of feedback about tournaments and organisation so I thought maybe I could help improve things.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What started as curiosity grew into commitment. Now in her second term, Rosengren\u00a0represents\u00a0players\u2019 concerns while helping bridge the gap between athletes and administrators.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an honour because it means the players trust you,\u201d she says. \u201cThey come to you with their problems and ideas.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Balancing the role with competition brings its own challenges. As a player, she naturally wants immediate improvements. As a commission leader, she has learned change often takes time.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Still, her motivation\u00a0remains\u00a0clear: making\u00a0Para badminton better for everyone.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Rosengren has\u00a0witnessed\u00a0the sport\u2019s rapid evolution firsthand since she began competing in 2016.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cPara badminton is completely different now,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s growing all the time.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Beyond\u00a0on-court\u00a0results, Rosengren values the sense of community that defines\u00a0Para badminton.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to support and help each other,\u201d she says. \u201cYou gain so much from that.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Though their roles are different, Waland and Rosengren share the same philosophy: progress happens when people invest in others.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In return, both say the sport has given them purpose,\u00a0growth\u00a0and a powerful sense of community.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For International Women\u2019s Day, their journeys capture the true meaning of #GiveToGain\u00a0\u2013\u00a0proof that when women lift others, the\u00a0sport\u00a0rises with them.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For Sonja Waland and Cathrine Rosengren, the theme of this year\u2019s International Women\u2019s Day\u00a0\u2013\u00a0#GiveToGain\u00a0\u2013\u00a0is the way they live their badminton journeys.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2630,"featured_media":14716,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"image","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[294],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14715","post","type-post","status-publish","format-image","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-whats-new","post_format-post-format-image"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14715","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2630"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14715"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14715\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14722,"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14715\/revisions\/14722"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14716"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14715"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14715"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/development.bwfbadminton.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14715"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}