Beatrice Go's journey creating Atleta Filipina and helping to build a future in sports for Filipino women

Philippine journalist Beatrice Go launched Atleta Filipina in January 2024 — a feat for the sports reporter turned solo media entrepreneur. Atleta Filipina serves as a beacon for women's sports in the Philippines, or, as she put it in this interview, "the purpose is for women to have a future in sports." She spoke about how the first couple of months have gone, the needs she wants to meet, and some of the partnerships she's trying to forge.

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The transcript

This audio recording was transcribed by OpenAI’s Whisper. These tools can make mistakes, especially when adjusting for and paraphrasing spoken words. Check important information against the actual podcast.

Rishad: Hey, this is Splice Pink. This is a podcast of quick conversations with people across the global media ecosystem. So we have media startup founders, journalists and funders to all the tech, data, and design folks. I'm Rishad. 

Alan: And I'm Alan. And today we're talking with our friend Beatrice Lauren Goh, who usually goes by Bee Go. Now the last time that we spoke, it was months ago. And oh, yes, she started her new company Atleta Filipina. How's it going? 

Beatrice: Yeah, it's been two months. We just turned two months old and there has just been a lot going on. And I think like every media startup founder could also attest to this that, you know, you could plan all you can. We did the audience research together back in 2022. Remember on the Appetite for Women Sports Content in the Philippines and it all started there. So it was a two year process. And then, you know, we got 2023 where I had to also as a founder heal also from a lot of things, you know, you have to, yeah, as an entrepreneur, you have to be like 100% like in that zone that you're healthy. You're also willing to give your all because you're starting something new. 

Alan: You had a lot going on for those couple of years. But you know, actually, before we get ahead of ourselves, why don’t you tell people what the what what the business is? What do you do? 

Beatrice: Yes. Okay, so Atleta Filipina is a startup for women sports in the Philippines. So we are here to serve the needs of the women sports community. And yeah, so that is basically the vision also. It's to just it's the mission. That's the brand purpose is to serve the needs of the women sports ecosystem in the Philippines. But then the vision definitely is and the purpose is for women to have a future in sports. 

Rishad: As always, I have a question around your user. So you're serving the needs of the sports ecosystem, which I find fascinating. What is that ecosystem apart from, I don't know, sports fans, players? Are we talking about people in government? 

Beatrice: Yeah, so there are so many stakeholders in women sports. So of course, we have the athletes, we have the coaches, we have the teams. And then the ones that are like unseen are more of the sports management, the media. And also, of course, there are funders and backers, sports patrons, and especially in the Philippines, we have to engage with a lot of sports patrons because the government could only provide like only a percentage of the support. And then there, there's a lot of red tape going on, of course. So but then the government also would always encourages like this private and public partnership. So it's always about engaging private companies to just help boost the women's sports ecosystem. So, so when Atleta Filipina began, it's really just to be that channel, you know, to gather this community of athletes, coaches, and teams just because no, there, there always, there has been like sport, female sports journalists, there have been female sports shows, but then for a brand to actually do this, like more that it's a more than media kind of thing. So that's where that's how Atleta Filipina was born. 

Alan: Can you tell us about some of these needs? You said needs maybe three, four times there earlier. What are some of these specific needs that you've come across? 

Beatrice: So I've been in the industry for over 15 years as an athlete, and then I became a sports journalist. Then now I'm a founder. So I've really seen how the Philippines, I've really gone deep into the Philippine sports ecosystem. And I could really say that you could really tackle this on the developmental aspect that there are just so many needs that you can't serve everything. But then, but then, you know, as a lot of Filipina, I'm a solo entrepreneur. And so I'm very much aware of my capacity. So everything has to start with me first and what I can do to actually fill in some gaps in the market because the needs can really range from athletes who don't have enough funding to even compete internationally. I have encountered athletes who don't even have shoes and equipment to train. And even like the coaching needs to be coaching needs to be coaches need to be more equipped as well. And there are also like in women's sports that there's still that mentality in the Philippines that, oh, we have a women's sports team for hockey. Oh, we have a women's sports team for football. So there's still a lack of awareness. And there's also that the mindset also that women like women are meant to be homemakers. Women are still working for unpaid labor in the Philippines just by being caretakers or even just doing all the housework. So that is still very prevalent in the Philippines. And I've also done research on that as a journalist last year with the ICFJ just talking about girls participation in sports. And there like even on the competitive level and the girls for girls, a lot of sports competitions get canceled just because they're not enough girls to form a basketball team, which is only five people. So yeah, I could like talk about so many needs. But then yeah, that's how vast it is. 

Rishad: Speaking of basketball teams, you recently, I mean, considering only two months old, you recently got involved with an event. Tell us how you did that? 

Beatrice: Yeah, so one of Atleta Filipina's first ever game coverage was actually the Manila Hustle 3X3 tournament, which is a 3X3 basketball tournament that gathered women teams from all over Asia and Oceana. So we had some Australia and Australian teams come and then we had Singapore. Thailand was their Japan Korea. And they all competed with the Philippine teams. And it was held in a mall like a huge one. It's called the Mall of Asia. So it's the biggest shopping mall in the Philippines. And the turnout was really great. The teams really enjoyed the Philippine hospitality also. But then for Atleta Filipina, that really meant so much also to the organizers, because finally, there was like, me, there's a media outfit and a brand that's actually there to cater to these kinds of events, these women only events who actually cover female athletes on a competitive level.

Because we're really trying to change the mindset that women don't have a future in sports. They cannot compete. They cannot earn money in sports. So this is what Atleta Filipina advocates for.

And then aside from that, we became a media partner for another association's event. So it's called the Women's Padel Association. And then just during their launch, they invited a top level padel coach from Spain to come and teach. And then it all and they gather different levels of padel athletes from advanced intermediate and beginner to actually join the sport. And Atleta Filipina was there to cover it. So those are like a lot of the great things that have been happening in Atleta Filipina. And also just like it's a blessing also that I've been on the job for quite a while. So all you know, we really as a start of I guess we get to leverage on our relationships. And I really was able to get the support of the sport, like the sports organizers and the sports media who I've worked with for so long that they have been inviting Atleta Filipina to their own events and even giving us access and media media IDs to cover the games. 

Alan: At this point, you've done a couple of things. You've done the reporting side of things. You've also found ways to leverage the excess that you've that you've had and relationships that you've built over the time. So when you look at the work that needs to be done, and again, you were saying previously that you are just one person and I think you know, that's a nice dose of reality. What do you enjoy doing most about this work as an entrepreneur, as a solo entrepreneur? What do you hate most about it? 

Beatrice: Do I end what I enjoy the most? Yeah, I went to Singapore last week. I know early this month, remember, we were supposed to meet up. And I think like, that was actually the vacation that I never knew I needed. Yeah, because honestly, as an entrepreneur, I was already in that zone where look, I have to write on my momentum. Oh, no, like, I booked this trip already, like why in the middle of women want like I could have done so much more. But then it was so it was I felt like it was just so like God ordained that I had to be in Singapore and actually met with my family there and really got to talk about like what I've been doing. And I think I just really needed encouragement that my uncle said that, you know, it's different when I'm actually on cam that it feels like I like what I'm doing. And I love what I'm doing. And I'm so passionate about it. And I was like, Oh, sorry, I'm it, it makes me cry just thinking about it. Because I feel like I'm like, Oh, I never it's not that I never really got to choose to do what I want. But it's more of like, there's just so much pressure, like there's so much pressure in life that people and people have so many other expectations. But then I'm just so glad and so I'm so glad to be deliberate also of my choices. Yeah, and to actually choose to do this, even though like, I know that it's gonna take a lot of me, it's gonna take a lot of my resources, I'm bootstrapped, funding and yeah, so of course, those are the challenges. And like, it's always like, to have the heart to also serve your market as well. Like I had to, I'm just so glad I'm right now in this space where I'm actually so in love with the mark with I'm so in love with sports, I'm so passionate about when equipping women and empowering them and like, letting them know that you know, there are actually steps to that because I also managed to I had to carve my own path as well. So nothing is really impossible.

So yeah, like when I went to Singapore and just got to like receiving all these words of encouragement that made me really that made me be even more sure of what I'm doing as a founder and it's because I love it.

Rishad: I just want to ask you a quick quick question since you mentioned boot bootstrapping. What is your long term business plan?

Beatrice: Yeah, for my long term business plan is good thing that we really have these sports clinics and these events because the one that Atleta Filipina will be staging for the first time, we're not offering it for free. There's definitely going to be a ticket price. And the reason why I'm doing this is because like in the Philippines, all these girls' sports organizations have always positioned themselves to be non profit that they tend to be more of charity organizations or companies that will consider them as corporate social responsibility. And that and it has or it and when we're getting people and resources, it was always on a volunteer basis that it does not become sustainable or it always becomes at the mercy of companies and big backers that so this is the reason why like Atleta Filipina I positioned it to be a for profit for profit organization and and like like the events part at least like this product can can earn and then me and for media like it might take a while to to I treat the media aspect of Atleta Filipina to be more of an investment because like the law it's investing into building the audience it's investing into strengthening the distribution channel which is Atleta Filipina, this a distribution channel for women's sports so the so the returns like I'm I've already talked to some people who have advised me that like expected to come three to five years later but then just do it. 

Alan: I like that you said you're testing and going as you figure this stuff out. What is the one theory that you have that you know that that you feel like still needs to be tested that you're still unsure of at this point? 

Beatrice: Hmm one thing that has to be tested. I just couldn't get well. I don't know if it's a platform thing but then I think I'm still trying to find the brand identity on these media platforms. I've released like content whether it's like photo whether it's like photos or reels and it's about different topics but then sorry like aside from like just figuring out which content works or not on these like different platforms I think like one thing that I really want to test is also e-commerce like because like there are fat there are sports teams who have their own merchandise and they were asking oh what if like Atleta Filipina can sell it for us be on a consignment basis but in my like how I'm seeing like how I'm seeing things right now and with my capacity maybe I'm not yet there like I don't like even the the awareness of these sports teams like yes they want to make the merchandise but then I need them I need to engage with them also or they also have to engage with their own communities to be able to make things work for everyone in the ecosystem so that's where I see that there's like actually some boundaries that I have to be firm with that okay Atleta Filipina can help here but also I have to be firm that I also need to see that you know are the resources that will shell out it's going to be beneficial for all the stakeholders that I like I hope that people like you have to prove to me that people will actually be buying your merchandise but then if and if it's not merged what else can we do maybe like we could just partner up to help build awareness on your team cover your stories and that will draw people into your games as well right so we have to see I also have to be firm with that. 

Rishad: Thank you, Bee Go. You spoke about sports teams wanting merch — I definitely want some AF merch! But thank you so much for spending some of your morning with us. That's a wrap for this episode of Splice Pink. If you like our conversations with people across the media ecosystem and want more please subscribe. Better yet, share this with someone. Get in touch! We're on splicemedia.com.