Rising Tide Leadership Institute

03/27/2026

Women to Watch!

Martine Grael- the first (only) woman driver on the world competitive SailGP circuit.

April 11-12 - Watch Martine battle the fleet on her home waters of Rio. From Olympic Gold to SailGP - Martine is the BOMB!

Full Story: https://sailgp.com/news/26/martine-grael-queen-of-the-bay-sailgp-rio/

03/08/2026

The Big Goal……. that girls and women are One of MANY. The day that is no longer surprising when a woman is an engineering, an America’s Cup sailor, a race car driver a scientist…. The day when women are MANY and being a ‘woman’ is not a description of a career position - it just IS…. Way to go Mercedes…. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DVit8OZjHKv/?igsh=NGJwZzBzdmxteWwx

03/02/2026

Isabella Robusto: Driven Different!
I met Isabella Robusto at the 2025 Women with Drive V Summit Women In Motorsports this past December in Indianapolis. She is the REAL DEAL! At lunch she shared with a few of us her crash and rehab story and all that Toyota has done to not only help her build back AND better. It lighted the emerging efforts of companies like Toyota to address women specific phsiological and safety issues within motorsports. Can’t wait to listen to this podcast with Isabella! (link below)

https://4e62191b.click.kit-mail3.com/mvu0vk8rw9h5hqvrerxumhr26e9ewb3hqq7wv/x0hph6heo2vqxmt5/aHR0cHM6Ly9wZGNuLmNvL2Uvd3d3LmJ1enpzcHJvdXQuY29tLzIzNTA1NTgvZXBpc29kZXMvMTg3NDIxNjAtaXNhYmVsbGEtcm9idXN0by1kcml2ZW4tZGlmZmVyZW50LWJ1aWxkaW5nLWEtYnJhbmQtaW4tYS1tYWxlLWRvbWluYXRlZC1zcG9ydC5tcDM_ZG93bmxvYWQ9dHJ1ZQ==

In this podcast:

Isabella Robusto: Driven Different: Building A Brand In A Male-Dominated Sport

​https://pdcn.co/e/www.buzzsprout.com/2350558/episodes/18742160-isabella-robusto-driven-different-building-a-brand-in-a-male-dominated-sport.mp3?download=true​

In this episode of the Women’s Motorsports Network Podcast, Melinda Russell sits down with 21-year-old ARCA driver Isabella Robusto to talk about her journey from go-karts at age four to racing full-time in the ARCA Menards Series.

Isabella shares how the NASCAR Drive for Diversity program launched her career, how Toyota’s Driver Development program shaped her path, and why the work off the track matters just as much as what happens on it.

From overcoming injury to building her personal brand “Driven Different,” Isabella opens up about racing, resilience, preparation, and her five-year goal to reach the NASCAR Cup Series.

This is a conversation about discipline, authenticity, and what it really takes to compete at the highest levels.
Love conversations that move the sport forward? Follow, subscribe, and leave a quick review to help more listeners find the show. Share this episode with someone who needs a nudge to take their first lap.

Thank you for supporting the Women’s Motorsports Network and helping us spotlight these incredible stories.

Stay safe and keep racing,
Melinda Russell​
Founder, Women’s Motorsports Network​
www.womensmotorsportsnetwork.com

02/25/2026

Eileen Gu (Ailing) 1 Gold🏅and 2 Silvers 🥈 @ Cortina bringing her Olympic medals to SIX! - the most decorated freestyle skier in Olympic history! Extraordinary Athlete and Multinational Role Model she shares “As far as trusting yourself - the power of sport is unparalleled - you can’t lie to yourself…. you know when you gave 100%…. I encourage more young girls to get into sport.. the power it has to build and instill confidence is special’.

02/12/2025

Coming out March 7th! Can’t wait to see this film! Set between 2017-2019, this is the real life journey of the first all girls' Robotics team from Afghanistan, founded by Roya Mahboob, who self-taught themselves to write code and fought all odds to win championships worldwide. One woman’s courage and vision to help girls mount up against tradition and obstacles that keep telling them ‘Girls can’t Code’ —. Girls CAN Code! and program computers, and contribute to the tech economy and go to school and be FREE!

Set between 2017-2019, this is the real life journey of the first all girls' Robotics team from Afghanistan, founded by Roya Mahboob, who self-taught themsel...

08/21/2024

All of us are able to excel and thrive thanks to the shoulders we stand on - whether it be in business, sport, family, health, the environment and more. When we wake up in the morning and decide to be productive we become part of those ladders that create opportunities for others. In 1971 Women’s Soccer was on the world stage in Mexico City with 100,000 people in a stadium watching. - the result? they were laughed at by the sports world and banned from FIFA. An amazing important story and a great reminder that all progress takes warriors, courage, time and champions. In addition to progress on and off the field and in pay - That a woman is an executive producer of this film! Thank you Serena! Stories matter and this is a BIG one. Being shown at the Newport Film Outdoors tonight. Available on Amazon Prime.

Told by the pioneering women who participated in it and built from archives unseen for fifty years, this is the extraordinary story of the 1971 Women’s Socce...

03/09/2024

Celebrating International Women’s Day with the history of women in the America’s Cup. A massive shout out to Dawn Riley on who’s shoulder’s so many of us have stood. Being part of the America3 Women’s Team in ‘95 was a personal life dream yet my greatest joy is seeing more and more young women stepping into elite sailing opportunities.

We all have SO much excitement for the upcoming Women’s America’s Cup racing in Barcelona in September in conjunction with the 37th America’s Cup. Watch 5 short awesome videos in this article of some of the best young women sailors in the world (Olympians, round the world racers and in-shore champions) as they train on the technology and sailing skills needed to compete in the AC. Thank you PUIG for stepping in to sponsor women in technology and on the water. ‘Here we go!’

For the first time in the 173-year history of the America’s Cup, there will be a stand-alone Women’s event - the Puig Women’s America’s Cup - open to all female athletes regardless of age. Alongside the established America’s Cup teams from New Zealand, Great Britain, Switzerland, Italy, US...

11/16/2022

I was recently invited by Lyn St. James to be the opening keynote speaker at the Women with Drive II conference held at Charlotte Motor Speedway. By building bridges at events like WWDII, we create opportunities to learn from one another... read more
https://conta.cc/3Gmhrql

    News from Courageous Thinking , Inc. November 2022   Women with Drive II Hello! I was recently invited by Lyn St. James to be the opening keynote speaker at the Women

06/30/2022

I recently had the opportunity to speak about women in sailing as part of ’s week-long tribute to the landmark 50th anniversary of this groundbreaking legislation.

04/13/2022

Exciting to see the escalating investment in women in the highest echelons of our sport. Steps of a pathway are being built!

Olympians and America's Cup champions Peter Burling and Blair Tuke have launched a sailing team to help propel women into professional sailing events.

03/18/2022

Thanks for the bad ass motivation this morning Sara Stone! - College rower turned elite foiling big boat racer.
Crushing it on the handles with Craig ‘OZ’ McFarlane coaching time and form. Nothing motivates me like being in the moment of high performance excellence! Wow - I’m ready to finish the week on fire! &fitness

Thanks for the bad ass motivation this morning Sara Stone! - College rower turned elite foiling big boat racer. Crushing it on the handles with Craig...

02/02/2022

'You can't be what you can't see'
Fantastic news! The Women's Sports Network will launch this summer! Women comprise over 40% of sports viewership but only 4% of sports media content covers women's sport. - 24/7 coverage of women athletes and women's sports has the potential to be a massive Game Changer!

The 24-hour television channel will be entirely devoted to covering female athletes.