What constitutes abuse in sport?
Abuse in a sporting context is the same as abuse in any other context; there are no special rules for sport. However, the sporting context creates unique opportunities for abuse to occur.
The special nature of the coach/athlete relationship, and the power imbalance that often exists in that relationship means that the lines can become blurred, and abuse can sometimes go on undetected. It can be easy to conceal or miss abuse when it is occurring under the guise of training and of creating winners.
If any of this is familiar, you can contact us at support@athleterightsaustralia.org. You can tell us as much or as little as you want to.
The main kinds of abuse are:
Verbal: words used to demean, frighten, or control,
Physical: when someone deliberately hurts your body or takes away your control of your body,
Emotional: a repeated pattern of fear, isolation, and intimidation, and
Sexual: unwanted sexual activity, where a person uses force or coercion to take advantage of another person who does not, or is not able to provide consent.
Neglect: in sport it looks like ignoring injury, failing to provide safe conditions, or withholding food, rest and medical care.