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– I experience a certain double communication from the sports side, says Jorunn Sundgot-Borgen, professor at the Norwegian Academy of Sports (NIH).
The Norwegian Academy of Sports (NIH) has taken matters into their own hands, and Sundgot-Borgen tells Nettavisen that they are already conducting an investigation aimed at mapping the incidence and extent of sexual harassment and abuse in sports. .
– It’s a PhD project at the Norwegian Academy of Sports with Nina Sølvberg as a researcher and me as a project manager, Jorunn Sundgot-Borgen tells Nettavisen.
The online newspaper recently wrote about Professor Kari Fasting, who describes it as “terrible” that there is no recent research on the extent of abuse of children and young people in Norwegian sports.
The last time this was investigated was in 1999, and the Norwegian Sports Confederation (NIF) admits to Nettavisen that new figures are desirable.
Håvard Øvregård at NIF confirms that they themselves can take the initiative for their own research and investigation, but believes this will be quite expensive.
Therefore, NIF has proposed in its contributions to the sports report to include said research project in a major study at the national level.
– Experience a certain double communication
Professor Sundgot-Borgen says they initially wanted to collaborate with the Norwegian Sports Confederation on the survey, but the answer was negative.
– We applied for financial aid, but they couldn’t prioritize this. However, I was lucky and received research funding from the Dam Foundation through the Norwegian Women’s Medical Association. This means that Nina Sølvberg, who also works at the NIH, now has salary funds so that the project can be carried out, says Sundgot-Borgen.
– What kind of justification did you get and what do you think of the refusal?
– They replied that they did not have the opportunity to prioritize this now. I experience a certain double communication from the sports side. On the one hand, they say that sexual harassment and abuse is a priority area. It is true that NIF has worked to publicize the notification routines and, of course, this is important. But at the same time, NIF responded that getting an overview of the incident could not be a priority. In my opinion, having an overview of advocacy is crucial when measures are to be implemented, and their effect must be measured, he says.
Whole series of articles: Abuse in sport
The Norwegian Sports Confederation has received criticism from Sundgot-Borgen.
Finn Aagaard, NIF Communications Manager, responds as follows:
– As we have said in our contribution to the new sports report, we want more knowledge about the extent and risk factors of sexual harassment and abuse in sport, both in the sense that the important research efforts carried out on the subject of childhood , adolescence and abuse should include data on sports as the biggest leisure activity for children and young people in Norway, and by the state collaborating with sport on a special investigation on sports, he writes in an email to Nettavisen.
– We see that there is a need for more knowledge also for leisure activities outside of sport and for the entire cultural, idrett and volunteer field, and we believe this is best achieved through greater cooperation between sport, government and others relevant stakeholders. We have started this work in a concrete way in the last year, and we are in a good dialogue with relevant actors in this area to prepare the bases for future research, and we would like this work to be strengthened, he adds.
Colleague Nina Sølvberg says that all students, coaches and leaders of the best sports secondary schools defined by the Olympic Summit, as well as a selection of ordinary upper secondary schools as a reference group, were invited to participate in the project.
– Students, coaches, and leaders answered a questionnaire in Fall 2019 / Spring 2020, and students now answer a follow-up questionnaire in Fall 2020 / Spring 2021. In addition, a selection of students, coaches is invited and leaders to an interview after the survey, says Sølvberg.
– we know very little
The scope of the survey will be relatively extensive.
Sølvberg and Sundgot Borgen say they have the following goals for how many people will participate:
- Approximately 1000 sports students divided into high-level sports, high-level sports and general sports
- About 300 ordinary high school students
- About 300 leaders and coaches
– Why has the NIH taken the initiative for this?
– There is a lack of research in this field in general, and we know very little about young Norwegian practitioners when it comes to how many people are sexually harassed. We also know that experiencing sexual harassment or abuse can contribute to serious health problems, reduced quality of life, drop in athlete performance, and apostasy, says Sundgot-Borgen.
Sølvberg says the purpose of the project is to map the incidence and extent of sexual harassment and abuse in and outside of sports, including how often, from whom, and in what setting the incident occurs.
– This knowledge can later be a good basis for developing preventive measures and educational programs for coaches, teachers and other relevant people who work with children and young people, believes Sølvberg.
There is still work to be done before the survey is completed.
– As the data collection will take place until the new year 2021, we cannot say anything about the results yet, but we hope to be able to present the results closer to the summer of 2021, reveals Sølvberg.
The researchers will also follow the group for many years to gain greater insight into the long-term effects of those who experience sexual harassment or abuse.
Contributes 2.1 million
Hans Christian Lillehagen, Secretary General of the Dam Foundation, confirms that they are helping to fund the project through the Norwegian Women’s Medical Association (NKS).
Lillehagen reveals that they have donated 2.1 million to the project.
– The Dam Foundation supports research and health projects that contribute to improving physical and mental health. Sexual harassment is serious, whether in sport or elsewhere, and in most cases it will have a strong impact on both the physical and mental health of the person being harassed. Therefore, this project is very important and we believe that the results may be of great importance for future efforts in this field, Lillehagen tells Nettavisen.
– As the latest press releases have shown, these are very relevant topics, where there is a great need for more knowledge and more measures. We are very happy to contribute to that, he adds.
– There is no reason to believe that there is less in sports.
Ingvild Hestad Torkelsen is the CEO of Nok Norge, formerly known as Fmso, which is a service for all people who have suffered sexual abuse and their families.
She is very happy that there will be updated figures on the incidence of sexual abuse in sports soon.
– It is also an important basis for preventive work. When you look at the numbers for how widespread sexual abuse really is, it also becomes easier to figure out when it happens. It can be easy to think that “this is not happening in my circle or in my environment”. So it is important to be able to document it. According to national abuse statistics, up to 1 in 3 women and 1 in 10 men have suffered abuse. About a third of these were exposed for the first time in childhood. There is no reason to believe that there is less incidence in sports, he tells Nettavisen.
Thursday, November 19, marks the World Day for the Prevention of Violence and Abuse against Children.
In this regard, Nok Norge, who is currently launching a new name and profile, has made a film to emphasize the extent of abuse in Norway.
Watch the movie here:
– What is your advice for children and young people who are practicing sports today, but who do not dare to say that they are being abused?
– Then I would say that no child or young person should have to experience what you have experienced. It is not your fault, it is the person who exposed you to the abuse who is responsible. And then I want to say that it is important that you tell someone. It could be your parents, the parents of a friend, a nurse, a teacher, or someone on the sports team. Someone you trust. All adults have a duty to do something when children and young people report sexual abuse. If they don’t take you seriously the first time you say it, they are the ones who are wrong and not you. Then you can tell someone else. The abuse must stop and you must seek help.
Do you need to report sexual abuse to yourself or others? Contact the police here.
You can also contact the emergency telephone number for children and young people at 116111 or 116111.no.
Here you can read all our cases in the article series on abuse in sport. Do you want to warn the Nettavisen journalists about something? Get in touch by email here.
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