ÇéÉ«ÁùÔÂÌì

This Sporting Life

It was during Hanya Pielichaty's 20 years as an elite footballer that the seeds of her pedagogical interest in gender inclusivity in sport were sown – a period when women and football were often viewed as an unusual pairing.

Hanya is now a National Teaching Fellow and Professor of Sport, Gender, and Inclusive Education at the ÇéÉ«ÁùÔÂÌì and her gendered experiences bring considerable knowledge to her role as both researcher and sports business management educator. Her research focuses on addressing and challenging gender inequalities and inequities across sport and education, and her work employs qualitative methods that prioritise ‘voice’ and people’s lived experiences.

Hanya strongly believes that sport reflects society and vice versa. A true culture shift strengthened by meaningful financial support, improved resources, and infrastructures is required to transform the current imbalanced landscape. 

Leading the Way

Hanya is programme lead for the MSc International Sports Business Management and Director of Student Inclusion at the Eleanor Glanville Institute, our dedicated centre for equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI). Here, she leads several projects including the Inclusive Education Resource Hub, drawing together teaching and learning materials on inclusive education, and the Critical Pedagogies in Sport (CPIS) network, where academics from sports-based higher education disciplines globally, review and challenge inequities in teaching and learning. 

In addition to her EDI work at the University, Hanya uses her research to inform sports organisations seeking to reduce inequalities in practice and holds trustee roles with the Active Partnerships national board and the Lincoln City Foundation board.

In 2022, she was also the academic front for the Let’s Move Lincolnshire refresh strategy consultancy project managed by the Centre for Organisational Resilience, leading the 16,000-word consultancy report which centred on equity and access. As a result of the project, Active Lincolnshire secured £2.6 million of funding from Sport England, demonstrating social and economic impact.

The Lincoln Experience

Hanya studied for her PhD at Lincoln, with supervisors Professor Heather Hughes and Professor Jacquelyn Allen-Collinson. Commenting on her experience as a postgraduate research student, she said: “I found Lincoln to be a very supportive place to both study and teach and enjoyed the opportunities to attend conferences and share ideas with others.” Hanya is herself now supervising a PhD student in Lincoln International Business School, utilising these positive experiences.

In addition to her teaching duties, Hanya is a member of the University’s Visitor Economy Research Group and is Chair of the Lincoln International Business School EDI Committee. She is also an affiliated member of the Centre for Innovation in Fatherhood and Family Research at the University.

The Word is Out

Hanya is an international author, having written three textbooks including , and co-authoring . Her newest publication, , is one of very few textbooks linked to the sports business discipline to be sole-authored by a woman.

Hanya is now looking to co-author an edited book with her CPIS colleagues, taking a critical perspective approach of sport-based higher education programmes to help ensure that education provides meaningful opportunities to challenge injustices. Her future work also seeks to make sure a greater number of women are represented in sports business scholarship, and to increase the number of women studying sports business management.

Discover More