News: April 2018

Experts from around the world explore means of ensuring global collaboration to end violence against athletes

On 8 April 2018, Michael Pedersen facilitated a strategy workshop in the context of the inaugural conference of Safe Sport International in Madrid, Spain. The workshop followed two intense conference days, which offered approx. 200 participants from around the world a platform for sharing experience, expertise and evolving good practices in safeguarding children doing sport.

The half-day strategy workshop was titled ‘Towards a Global Collaboration to End Violence Against Athletes in Sport’. Based on a highly engaging and interactive design, it offered participants an opportunity to work with peers from across sectors, countries and regions in shaping Safe Sport International’s future strategy and activities to coordinate and mobilize global action.

Specifically, the workshop offered participants a platform to:

  • Share and acquire knowledge about issues, evolving good practices and existing collaborations in safeguarding and protecting adult and child athletes; globally, regionally and nationally as well as across sectors
  • Recognize their potential contribution in achieving the vision of ending violence against athletes in sport
  • Identify gaps in both their own and others’ knowledge, information, resources and support needs to realise this vision
  • Shortlist priority areas to be addressed and by whom
  • Develop recommendations for next steps individually and collectively towards the 2020 Safe Sport International Summit in Canada

As a result of taking different stakeholder perspectives and working in the future, participants carried out SWOT-analyses and developed strategic stakeholder assessments and engagement strategies. Identified strengths to utilize in the future work to safeguard children in sport included:

  • A passionate and diverse community of experts from around the world
  • The existence of evidence based data
  • Strong media interest in the issue
  • Involvement (and resource allocation) by numerous governments
  • Collaboration and partnerships with a growing number of sport organizations

Key takeaways identified by workshop participants individually included the following aspects:

  • There is a vast and wonderful community of collaborators supporting safe sport
  • It is important to make safeguarding in sport the norm and an integrated part of good governance in sport
  • There is great power in harnessing support of former, current and future athlete voices
  • Forging new relationships will make the work more effective
  • With commitment, passion and friendship, we will end violence in sport everywhere

For further information, see Website of Safe Sport International