My inquiry question: How can the different types of abuse in sports be diminished?
What are the different kinds of abuse in sports?
What is abuse
In simple terms, abuse is defined as any action that intentionally harms or injures another person. (1) Although the definition of abuse may be straightforward, the meaning of abuse is not as clear. Abuse is essentially the control an individual has over another person through abuse. (1) While this paragraph will provide a more in-depth look into abuse, it is important to highlight that there is no excuse for abuse. No person has the right to control another person through abuse. (1) Additionally, abuse is never the victim’s fault and every person has the right to live an abuse-free life. (1) Abuse is a misuse of power using trust, intimacy and dependency to make the victim vulnerable. (2) Abuse can affect anyone, no matter their age, sex or race. Moreover, it can happen in any kind of relationship. This includes friendships and romantic relationships. Hate crimes directed at people because of their race, religion, abilities, gender, or sexual orientation are also considered abuse. (3) Furthermore, abuse may affect a person’s self-esteem, mood, focus, quality of sleep, or interest in activities they once enjoyed. (3) It is essential to speak up about abuse as the impact can be substantial and to prevent it from happening to other athletes.
However, others must never blame victims for not speaking out sooner as we have never experienced the trauma that they did. (3) So why don’t victims speak up about abuse? The simplest answer is that fear muzzles the truth. (4) Experiencing abuse can be traumatizing and have long-lasting effects on an individual’s physical and mental health. Understanding abuse may be difficult. However, society needs to understand that fear is a natural reaction to threats and a victim’s fear of their abuser is valid. (4) Therefore, we should not judge when victims are unable to speak up against their abuser. Most commonly, the reasons victims don’t speak up about abuse are the fear of being judged or not being believed, the fear of retaliation and going nowhere in their careers and the fear of feeling responsible for the abuse or that speaking up can lead to direct physical harm. (4)
The kinds of abuse in sports
Abuse is prevalent in all sports. However, the most common kinds of abuse in sports are physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological abuse, and emotional abuse. (5) Physical abuse is defined as assault and forcible confinement. (5) This can include actions such as strangling and hitting another individual. Sexual abuse is defined as any conduct of a sexual nature which is non-consensual. (7) Psychological abuse refers to any unwelcome act such as intimidation, gaslighting, humiliation or any other treatment which diminishes their sense of identity. (7) And finally, emotional abuse is any non-physical behaviour meant to control, isolate, or frighten you. (5) Specifically for youth, abuse is more prevalent due to the big power imbalance between a coach or the parent over the athlete. (6) The most common types of abuse youth athletes face are physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and neglect. Most notably, it’s important to understand that many forms of abuse can occur at the same time. (6) For example, a coach may physically abuse a child while also emotionally abusing them. Additionally, all genders can be victims of abuse, and both male and female coaches can be perpetrators. (6) More importantly, there are absolutely no excuses for abusing a child, and it is never the victim’s fault! (6) Therefore, it is vital that parents discuss this information with their children so that they are aware of what counts as abuse and inappropriate treatment so they can speak out.
Examples of athletes who suffered from abuse in sports
In a recent news story, many former Australian gymnasts spoke up regarding instances of abuse. The athletes alleged that the coaches normalized a toxic environment which included mental and physical abuse. (8) The many allegations include pressure over their weight, food deprivation, criticism, coercion, pressure to train through injuries and a widespread violation of adult-child supervision guidelines. (8) In response, Gymnastics Australia acknowledged the allegations by saying they want to improve the sport’s culture despite many alleging that some adults in the programme were complicit in their silence. (8) Similarly, former women’s soccer players in Iowa alleged their coach Tony Minatta used demeaning language, bullying and unfair treatment. (9) Many athletes claim he beat them down emotionally, and former player Bailey Heffernon stated that he made her feel so bad about herself that she developed anxiety and severe depression. Despite these mental health issues, he called her a waste of space and scholarship money. (9) Another instance of abuse in sports is when a Whistler luge athlete Garrett Reid alleged his coach Matt McMurray’s abuse negligence led to an injury in 2019. (10) He claims that his coach demonstrated a pattern of systemic abuse, harassment and bullying deading-up to the crash. (10)
Sources:
- https://www.healthyplace.com/abuse/abuse-information/what-is-abuse-abuse-definition
- https://www.edmontonpolice.ca/VictimSupport/WhatIsAbuse
- https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/family-abuse.html
- https://www.thehotline.org/resources/why-didnt-you-say-anything/
- https://newsroom.carleton.ca/story/abuse-in-sports-culture/
- https://www.momsteam.com/emotional-abuse/types-abuse-neglect-sports
- https://olympics.com/athlete365/safe-sport/safe-sport-entourage-factsheet/
- https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-53509107
- https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2023/03/27/iowa-state-soccer-players-allege-emotional-abuse-three-head-coaches/11474195002/
- https://www.piquenewsmagazine.com/local-news/whistler-luger-coach-abuse-negligence-2019-injury-6890928
Hi Itzel,
This is such an important topic. I really appreciate how you mentioned that all genders can be victims of abuse, and how all genders can be perpetrators. I think it’s very important to understand that females can be abusers because a lot of people only focus on males. I also love how you mentioned that parents need to educate their children on these things because children are never at fault for their abuse. When children know from a young age what abuse is and what inappropriate treatment is, it is less likely for them to experience abuse, and they will also be more likely to reach out to a trusted adult if they are experiencing abuse. For your future research, I think it could be interesting to look at ways sports leagues can prevent abuse from happening, and see if any steps are being taken right now to protect their athletes. For example, are coaches and athletes being educated by anyone about abuse?
Here are some resources I think could help you in the future:
https://globalsportsdevelopment.org/sexual-abuse-sport-prevention/
https://theathletic.com/2862063/2021/10/01/a-fear-based-system-how-the-structure-of-sports-protects-abusers-of-power/
Once again, this is such an important topic and I’m looking forward to reading your future posts!
-Shaila
Hello Shaila,
thank you for reading my blog post and for your excellent suggestions and extra resources! I will definitely be using these resources in some of my next blog posts! I’m happy to know that some of my main points were well highlighted and acknowledged for example when you noticed my point that all genders can be perpetrators. I loved your suggestions and found that my future blog posts will address your suggestions. My next blog post talks about the nature of the problem including topics such as the law of silence and how institutions value their image over the safety of their athletes. After this, my next blog post will look into how we can prevent abuse in sports. I will be talking about educating athletes, parents and coaches regarding the safety of athletes. So stay tuned!
-Itzel
I agree that this is such an important topic! It would also be really interesting to explore the gender bias in sports as relating to the types of abuse in sports.
I can’t wait to read your future posts!
Aniela
Hi Itzel, great post! Abuse in sports is sadly a very common issue, Studies indicate 40% to 50% of athletes have experienced anything from mild harassment to severe abuse, with studies indicating that 40% to 50% of athletes have experienced anything from mild harassment to severe abuse. While abuse in youth sports has become accepted as an unfortunate by-product of the activity, it should never be tolerated. While I have never been affected by an act of abuse, I know multiple friends who have told me about cases in which their coach used violence or emotional abuse towards them or one of their teammates. Verbal abuse is so common at this point that many people believe it’s simply part of sports culture, but that should not be the case. While it can be useful for a coach to use powerful language to inspire his/her athletes, even seemingly small actions, such as verbal abuse, should never be tolerated. Interesting post, I can’t wait to read your next submission!
Some sources you may find useful are:
https://www.dlawgroup.com/in-depth-look-sexual-abuse-youth-sports/#:~:text=Abuse%20occurs%20in%20all%20types,to%208%25%20of%20all%20athletes.
https://newsroom.carleton.ca/story/abuse-in-sports-culture/
https://www.childhelp.org/speakupbesafe/speak-up-be-safe-for-athletes/
https://www.humanium.org/en/exploitation-of-children-in-sport-a-widespread-and-unchecked-problem/
https://psychcentral.com/lib/the-consequences-of-verbally-abusive-athletic-coaches#:~:text=What%20Does%20Verbal%20and%20Emotional,merely%20with%20the%20spoken%20word.
I don’t know why one of my sentences is repeated in my comment, I didn’t mean for that. My mistake!
Hello Itzel,
What a spectacular topic to bring awareness to. Abuse in a sport environment is awfully common, and not adequately touched on. One fact that I found extremely insightful was the types of abuse most common in a sport setting. The list of physical, sexual, psychological, and emotional are the four most common in general, most likely because they are applicable to sports as well.
I would love to see you go further into the long-term psychological effects present in athletes who are abused. Does it change the outcome of their possible professional sporting career? Cool topic, and I can’t wait to see what you cover next post!
Below I have listed some useful resources:
https://www.momsteam.com/5-7/effects-abuse-neglect-in-sports
https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/51/4/405.1
https://newsroom.carleton.ca/story/abuse-in-sports-culture/
-Ava