Safeguarding talented and elite athletes

A young person on the talent pathway will undoubtedly experience change and challenges, which may make them feel under pressure at times. The pressure to succeed, to be selected and to meet their own expectations, as well as the expectations of those around them.

Young people may also have other stressful experiences and pressures outside of sport, including social, academic, family or other day-to-day expectations. Understanding, anticipating and openly communicating about these experiences will help support the young person and give them a voice and some control. 

However, at times the pressure can begin to build, which can put young people at risk of harm if not identified and addressed effectively. Coaches, sports personnel and parents and carers should ensure they openly communicate with athletes; working together to ensure they are coping, and responding appropriately when concerns of excessive amounts of pressure arise. 

Expectations for young athletes

A talented young athlete may dream of succeeding at the highest level in their sport. Supporting them in setting achievable progress goals, by breaking down the overall aspirational journey into smaller, step-by-step goals, will be beneficial. This will help to manage their expectations, reduce the overall sense of pressure, and navigate the ups and downs of their sporting journey.

Whether it be a tournament, a competition or a qualifier, recognising and celebrating success at each level can help athletes and their support network feel a sense of achievement.

Dealing with not achieving their goals in a similar way will also help. It doesn’t mean an end to their progression, just a small bump in the road. By using the 'not yet' growth approach, the athlete can be supported in perceiving this not as failure, but as an opportunity to learn and move forward. 

Resilience in sport

By definition, sport is competitive, meaning that it is almost inevitable that young people will not win every time. 

Different young people at all levels will have varying levels of resilience to set-backs, or not quite achieving their goals.

Though not winning or achieving their goals may be disappointing, they need to be reassured that it's okay and it may not be the end of their dream. Sport should still be fun, and this is also good to reiterate.

Coping with success can also be difficult for some athletes. With success may come the pressure to succeed again and to always perform highly, the pressure to act as a role model for others, and potentially pressure from the media, sponsors or other sources.

Coaches, sports personnel and parents and carers should support young people through the success journey, being careful to help them manage pressure and expectations, and stay grounded in recognition of their hard work.

Selection and deselection

At different levels during sport there are selection and deselection choices made regarding which athletes are offered the opportunity to participate in an event or activity. This offers an exciting opportunity for some but also means another athlete in their social circle may not have been selected.

Being selected for a team, squad or onto the talent pathway may bring mixed emotions – happiness, but also a pressure to stay. This selection may also bring changes to the young person's lifestyle, such as moving training groups, changing coach or less time for friends outside sport. 

Parents and carers are key influencers in the young athlete's life and career, and therefore they need to be part of the communication with coaches, particularly when changes are happening, so that they understand decisions and feel able to support their child.

Coaches should explain to the young person and their parents or carers why the decision has been made, and if the young person has not been selected, what they can work on to continue their improvement.

Retirement from sport

Whether it be due to injury, physical body changes, health, finance, education, or any other issue, young people may find themselves having to retire from competing in their sport. Retirement can negatively affect young athletes, particularly if the issue is out of their control.

Finding that they can no longer compete in their sport at a high-performance level can undoubtedly be upsetting for young people. Sports coaches, parents and carers, and other sports personnel should ensure that they provide support through this transition.

Athletes’ expectations of their career length should be managed carefully, ensuring that they have an understanding that retirement will eventually become a reality for them. Athletes should be supported in developing new interests and ways to participate beyond retirement from their sport.

Starting and maintaining the life of a performance or pathway athlete can be exciting, but also daunting, as it takes time to adjust and learn how to balance training with all the other things in life.

Keeping a balanced approach is important, as sport is only one part of a young athlete's life. Education, family, friends and hobbies are all beneficial to the young person's wellbeing, and should be maintained.

At times, the balance may tip slightly; for example, during exam periods or in the lead-up to competitions. However, young people should be supported in returning to a balance as soon as possible, ensuring that overall it is maintained. 

Balancing sport and education

While many talented young people may dream of a career within their sport, it’s important that they are encouraged to continue with their education, and understand the importance of achieving their best. Education can open more doors to a future within and beyond sport. 

Under Section 7 of the 1996 Education Act, it is the responsibility of parents or carers to ensure their child receives efficient, full-time education suitable to their age, ability and aptitude, and any special educational needs they may have. Either by regular attendance at school or otherwise. Training or any other sports requirement should not be prioritised over the young person receiving this education fully.

Coaches, parents and carers could work with the young person to come up with an education plan, ensuring everyone’s expectations are clear, and sports training is able to fit alongside education. This should also include adequate time for homework and revision, and will be particularly important when approaching exam periods.

If a young person is finding it hard to meet these commitments, education providers, parents and carers, and coaches should work together with the young person to carefully establish how best to manage both requirements, and if mitigations must or can be made.

Balancing sport and a healthy social life

Although there may be times when training, competitions and other activities need to be prioritised over socialising, young people should still have time away from sport to be with their friends.

While coaches may wish to ensure their athletes show commitment, young people should not be made to feel that they are unable to also have a social life.

Coaches, other sport personnel and parents and carers should strive to have an open channel of communication with the young person, where they feel comfortable expressing an interest in activities outside the sport.

Sport, by definition, requires a significant level of physical exertion. When training at a high-performance level,  young people will be pushing their body to continue to improve and maintain a high level of physicality.

Coaches, sports personnel and parents and carers should always prioritise looking after the young person’s physical health overachieving any sport goal.

Injury and recovery management

Injuries can occur at any time during sport and activities, which can be disappointing and frustrating for young people, their teammates and support networks. Sustaining an injury while on the talent pathway can be very challenging for young athletes, as they've been working hard towards their goal, only to have it compromised.

If a young person has sustained an injury, they should avoid participating in any sport activity that could impact their healing. They should be supported through this time both physically and mentally.

Some injuries are not preventable, while others may occur as a result of improperly looking after the body, such as from overtraining, worsening of a previous injury, or due to a health condition. Seeking help and support to manage these injuries and other health conditions that may impact the athlete's ability to train well may be hard for the young person.

As coaches, parents and carers, and sports personnel, you should aim to create an environment where the young person feels that:

• they can come forward at any point to disclose an injury
• they will be supported
• their health will be put first

It is important that athletes understand the injury and the recovery process, including time scales. Being realistic with time scales and adjusting targets using progress goals can help young athletes understand and maintain motivation. You should ensure that you remind them of the support they have around them throughout their recovery.

You may also be able to use this time as an opportunity to learn and maybe work on other areas of their fitness or training, only if this can be done safely without disrupting the healing process or causing further injury. Keeping the young person involved in training sessions and the training group, where this is possible, can help to maintain their sport identity. Is there another role they can play in the club while they recover, so they still feel connected?

Young athletes should only participate in the sport once their recovery period, as recommended by a medical professional, has come to an end. When returning to training, the young person should be supported in managing the volume and intensity of training, as too much too soon could contribute to further physical or psychological harm.

It is important for everyone involved to remain mindful that returning to sport may cause the young person some significant stress and anxiety, as they may be concerned about getting back to their best performance level, whilst also managing concerns of sustaining further injury.

Continuous communication should help coaches to monitor how the young person is feeling and help with interventions, while ensuring that they are not being pushed too hard.

Eating behaviour

As children and young people grow and develop, they will experience many changes to their body, which, in some cases, can impact their sporting ability. Young people can develop sensitivities around their eating behaviours due to these changes.

Everyone involved in sport should ensure that there is always a positive, healthy culture around body image and physical health. Weight, diet and body type should be discussed sensitively, and coaches should always put the physical and mental health and wellbeing of the athlete at the forefront, above any sports goal.

Children and young people should never feel the need to unhealthily change their body in a way that goes against their natural development.

If you suspect that a young person may be developing an unhealthy relationship with eating, engaging in disordered eating behaviours, or has developed an eating disorder, you should speak to your safeguarding lead about next steps and how to support the young person to seek help.

• For more information about body image, weight management and disordered eating in sport, listen to our 5-part mini-podcast series that we produced with Dr Carolyn Plateau, Senior Lecturer in Psychology and former 800 meter international athlete
• We also have a podcast about the impact of social media on young athletes' body image, featuring Swim England Talent and Events Welfare Officer Rebecca Wood, and CPSU Senior Consultant Carole Billington-Wood.

Fuelling the body

Young athletes should be encouraged to listen to the needs of their body and understand that food is an essential source of energy and nourishment. We expend this energy through exercise as well as through internal bodily processes.

The term Relative Energy Deficiency (RED-S) is used in sport when energy expenditure outweighs energy intake. This leaves the body in a compromised state as it doesn’t have enough energy to support both the athlete's exercise and their bodily processes, affecting health and performance.

An athlete may experience RED-S for many different reasons; for example:

• an athlete may have increased their training, such as in the lead-up to a big competition, but not matched that with their energy intake. This could lead to a deficiency.
• a young athlete may be experiencing puberty, which requires more energy, but this may not have been accounted for in their energy intake.
• an athlete may have developed an unhealthy relationship with food, disordered eating behaviours or an eating disorder.

It is essential to recognise what has caused the RED-S so that we are able to understand how to restore the balance.

It is important to speak to young people about RED-S, and healthy eating as a way to provide their body with the energy it requires. This could help the young person to develop a more healthy relationship with food and exercise. Avoid potentially triggering language such as 'weight' or 'diet'.

Making weight in sport

In weight-making sports (where athletes must meet certain weight requirements to compete), young people should feel supported and given guidance to make weight at a healthy level and speed.

Without this, young people can be left vulnerable to developing unhealthy or dangerous practices to manage and maintain their weight, which can be both detrimental to their performance and to their long- or short-term health.

There should be a regular review to ensure that young people are making weight for the most appropriate category, which enables a balance between optimising performance without engaging in behaviours and practices that are doing more harm than good.

For example, if a young person must lose weight in order to meet their category requirement, they will almost certainly have to be in an energy deficient stage (RED-S), which, as outlined above, can have performance risks.

There are certain considerations that organisations must address in order to support their young athletes who are going through the process of making weight:

• How are decisions about the weight categorisation being made, and are they in the best interests of the longer-term health of the young person?
• Whose responsibility is it within the organisation to protect the health and welfare of the young person as they go through this weight-making process?
• What safeguarding is in place to make sure that the young person is not engaging in unhealthy or dangerous practices?
• What advice is being given to the young person as they embark on this process? And is it being communicated effectively, giving enough time for the young person to make the weight without relying on extreme behaviours and practices to meet the criteria for their competition?
• What are the consequences for the organisation and the young person if they are unable to make the weight for the competition? What procedures are in place to support young people who are unable to safely meet the weight?
• How can organisations minimise the level of distress for young people associated with their weight management being under scrutiny for long periods of time?

Overtraining

When specialising in a singular sport at an early age, young people may be encouraged to train intensively in similar ways to gain certain skills and strengthen specific areas. However, research has identified that such a highly intensive approach can risk overuse injury, overtraining and even burnout.

Intense training sessions for some young people may result in an overuse injury. An overuse injury is any type of muscle or joint injury, which is usually sustained due to training errors when an athlete takes on too much physical activity too quickly. 

Coaches, parents and carers, and other sports personnel should ensure that they carefully navigate training requirements and competitions, with the needs and wants of the young person at their stage of their physical development and maturity.

Although sport is, by nature, physically challenging, overall young people should still feel enjoyment in training for and competing in their sport. They should not be pushed to burnout or encouraged to over train, risking this enjoyment being taken out of the sport.

In order to maintain a healthy lifestyle as an elite athlete, balancing the demands of their sport and the demands of other life commitments must be considered and maintained.

When this balance tips, aspects of the athlete’s life, and their physical and mental health, can become negatively impacted.

Athletes should be supported by sports personnel, family, education staff and other influential figures within their support circle to ensure that they are able to maintain a healthy balance, where their health and development remains the priority. They need to feel that trusted adults around them are listening, recognising, responding and advocating for their wants and needs.

If you recognise that an athlete is struggling, the balance has become unhealthily tipped, or their health and development appears to no longer be a priority, you should raise a concern with your club welfare officer or lead safeguarding officer.

Mental health and wellbeing

Children and young people can experience a wide range of mental health issues for many different reasons. Sport and staying active can have a positive influence on mental health and wellbeing.

However, there are some unique stressors within sport that can have a negative influence, particularly given the additional pressure when competing at the elite and high-performance level.

Athletes' extended physical and mental pressure can contribute to the development of difficulties with mental health, which can only be exacerbated when the balance tips.

If you are concerned about a young athlete's mental health and wellbeing, speak to your welfare officer or lead safeguarding officer.

• for more information on how you can recognise and respond to concerns about a young person's mental health in sport, visit our Mental health and wellbeing topic page

Loneliness

There are certain factors within sport, particularly elite sport, that can leave a young athlete feeling isolated and lonely.

Training in sport at an elite level requires a huge time commitment, which can result in time being taken away from other areas of life. This can mean that young elite athletes have limited time for socialising with friends or family outside of their sport.

In addition to this, young athletes may feel that they need to mature quickly, as they are spending a lot of time interacting within the 'adult world' of the elite and high-performance competitions and training, and having to manage the media. This can make them feel isolated from peers their own age. Research indicates that those who are lonelier and more isolated can be more vulnerable to abuse and exploitation.

• we have produced a webinar with advice and guidance on supporting those involved in sport to reduce loneliness: 

Anxiety

Anyone can experience anxiety at any time during their life, including children and young people. With so much pressure, both physically and mentally, on top of other demands, young athletes can develop anxious thoughts. Anxiety can take many forms, from anxious thoughts about their future to health anxiety.

There are certain situations within the elite and talent pathway that a young athlete may experience pressure within their sport, which can feed into a mental health issue like anxiety. What might start as nerves about a selection decision or a competition, can, for someone with mental ill health, begin to manifest in other areas of their lives.

• read more guidance in our briefing on supporting young athletes with anxiety
• on Mind's website, you can learn more about the different anxiety disorders and the signs and symptoms that you can look out for 

Disordered eating and eating disorders

Physical health and body image are often directly entangled within sport and physical activity. Being in the elite sporting environment, which is intrinsically linked to the function and sometimes the image of the body, can antagonise weight and body image concerns and dysmorphia, and contribute to the development of disordered eating behaviours and eating disorders.

Those working with young athletes should ensure that, where possible, the athlete is avoiding being in a state of relative energy deficiency (RED-S). Where RED-S in an athlete is identified, sports personnel should work with the athlete to understand and address the cause in order to restore a healthy energy intake and expenditure balance, in turn optimising health and performance.

However, some sports require athletes to make weight in order to compete, which can often involve establishing an energy deficiency (RED-S) for periods of time to lose weight. Athletes should feel supported throughout the process of weight-making, and be given guidance to make weight at a healthy level and speed.

If left without support and guidance offered at the appropriate time, athletes may feel that they have to adopt disturbed practices that are unhealthy or even dangerous to meet the criteria.

If you suspect that an athlete may be either developing an unhealthy relationship with eating, engaging in disordered eating behaviours, or has developed an eating disorder, you should speak to your safeguarding lead to discuss what steps to take.

• for more information about body image, weight management and disordered eating in sport, listen to our 5-part mini-podcast series that we produced with Dr Carolyn Plateau, Senior Lecturer in Psychology and former 800 meter international athlete

Throughout the career of an elite young athlete, parents who are positively involved play a key role in their health and wellbeing as well as their overall success.  

Coaches and parents should always communicate effectively and ensure they are working together to support young people. Parents play an important role in their child’s sporting life, both when things are going well and by supporting them if something’s wrong. In the adult world of elite sport, having a trusted adult to turn to with any worries, concerns or help is vital to ensure the young person feels safe. 

If you are worried that your child is being abused or at risk during their involvement in sports, it is vital that you talk to someone. Take a look at our Speaking out in sport pages for advice.

Parents should always put the wants and needs of their child over any of their sporting commitments.

As a parent of an elite athlete, you will appreciate how tough it can be for your child to achieve their best at the right moment in the many different environments they are part of – sport, friends and social, school or academic work and even growing and maturing physically and mentally. 

Coaches and parents need to talk, understand and support together the needs of the young athlete. For example, if the coach is discussing recovery ideas with a young athlete, the parent should be involved in the conversation too, so that everyone involved in looking after the child is aware of what they should be doing and why.  

Regularly having conversations with your child about how they are feeling can help your child to know that you are there to listen to any concerns that they may have. Being mindful with feedback can also help your child feel well supported during competitions and training. 

Checking the safeguards are in place

Parents should ensure that the appropriate safeguards are in place to protect their child.

• download our poster, which covers the 5 key questions that parents should feel confident about asking their child’s sports club

Conflict with coaches

There may be occasions when a parent disagrees with a decision that a coach has made; for example, their child may not have been selected for a team or competition. However, unless there is a genuine concern that the decision has been made on the basis of inappropriate bias or misconduct, parents are advised to focus on supporting their child.

Parents should avoid conflict with the coach, and approach coaches for clarification about the decision, calmly, away from any young people. Both coach and parent should take a child-centred approach and put their own feelings aside and focus on how they can both support the young athlete in their enjoyment and success.

Maintaining positive parent-coach relationships can help young athletes to succeed in and enjoy sport.

Responsibility of care

Parents should ensure that they are always aware at what times they are responsible for looking after their child at events, competitions and training.

Parents should communicate with care providers, including coaches, event organisers and chaperones to ensure they know drop-off and pick-up details, and who is responsible for their child during times when they are not doing their sport.

Managing finances

Funding a child through elite and high-performance sport can be a huge financial burden for parents and carers. However, children should not be made to feel that they themselves are becoming a burden.

Healthy communication about the financial side of their involvement in elite and high-performance sport could assist a young athlete’s financial learning. By openly communicating in a positive way, a parent can help the young person to understand money management and appreciate when finances are tight.

There may be opportunities to earn or be given funding within elite sport. This could be through being awarded a grant, winning a bid or being approached with sponsorship deals.

Parents should work with coaches and sports personnel to understand what funding opportunities may be available to them, and how they can apply for and secure appropriate funding.

They should also ensure that any scholarships or sponsorship deals that have been offered to the young person are legitimate and are appropriate for the young person to be involved with, ensuring that the young person isn’t being tied into a contract that requires them to do anything that they can’t, or don’t want to, commit to.

All young people have the right to enjoy sport, free from all forms of abuse and exploitation, and to be involved in decisions affecting them.

There are lots of things that young people can do, and be involved in, to help promote their own welfare and safety. It is important for sports organisations to take responsibility for making young people aware of these things, and to encourage them in achieving them. 

What sports organisations can encourage young people to do

Know their rights and responsibilities

Young people in high-performance sport will have responsibilities to comply with their sport's code of conduct, and also those related to specific areas such as anti-doping. Young athletes' rights and options should be made clear to them by their coaches and sports organisation.

For further information, see UK Anti-Doping's Clean sport essentials for talented young athletes.

Be familiar with their sport's safeguarding policy and procedures

These policies and procedures will have information about what young people can expect the organisation to do to look after their wellbeing, and what is expected of the individual and other people such as parents and carers, and coaches. Sports organisations should familiarise young people with these policies and procedures; making them aware of how their wellbeing will be prioritised. 

Contact your National Governing Body for further details.

Be committed to the athletes' code of conduct

National Governing Bodies (NGBs) should have a code of conduct explaining how young athletes are expected to behave, and also how other people involved with the organisation are expected to behave. It will also outline what will happen if these codes are not followed. Again, sports organisations should make young people aware of these codes of conduct, in a way that they will understand.

Know how to raise any concerns

All NGBs have to provide information on where to go for help and advice in relation to abuse, harassment and bullying.

It’s important that young people can talk to someone they trust if they have concerns about anything that might be happening to them, or anyone else, in or outside of their sport. Sports organisations should make it clear to young people that there are staff available to talk to, who are able and willing to listen and help. 

Young people should also consider what support systems are in place among and beyond their entourage members (for example, family, friends, teachers and/or coaches).

Ask for support as they transition through the system

Transitions can involve entering top-level sport, moving from junior to senior ranks, deselection, appeals, and leaving top-level sport.

Transitions can be really hard; support should be provided by sports organisations to help young people navigate through the process. There should be inductions that provide information about how the system operates and what support is available. This should be part of a continuous conversation about the individual's sport and life after top-level sport.

For more information, see UK Sport's resources for athletes, which includes guidance on transitioning from a career in high-performance sport.

Seek opportunities to become a voice for athlete welfare

Young people can become a voice in decision-making about young athlete welfare and protection. Sports are required to have mechanisms and opportunities in place to consult children, young people and parents and carers, as part of their reviews of safeguarding policies and practices.

Support their peers

Young people can support their peers by encouraging and helping them to speak out if they witness or have any concerns about their own or anyone else’s welfare. Sports organisations should actively encourage and support this. 

Young people can also be made aware of NSPCC’s Childline, which provides information, advice and support for young people, no matter what they’re going through. 

A wide range of resources are available to help safeguard talented and elite young athletes – we list some of the most useful resources here.

CPSU resources

• Body image, weight management and disordered eating in sport – podcast mini series
• Eating disorders and disordered eating in youth sport – webinar
  
• Mental health and wellbeing – topic page
• Positive sports parents – support talented young athletes – video
• Learning from inquiries about safeguarding practice in sport briefing
• Key themes, learning and recommendations from the Whyte review briefing
• Taking care of your wellbeing as a safeguarding professional

Sports resources

• Harassment and abuse in sport – International Olympic Committee (IOC) resource which tackle the issues of sexual harassment and abuse (SHA) and healthy body image (HBI)
• Healthy body image 'Hungry for gold' – IOC developed a series of videos as educational tools aimed at athletes, parents, coaches and support staff
• Impact of engagement in career planning program – webinar summary by Performance Lifestyle 
• Mental health support in high performance sports – English Institute of Sport guidance and videos to support sports with mental health
• On a talent pathway / sporting talent – Clean sport essentials guidance and resources from UK Anti-Doping
• UK Coaching coordinating group to ensure welfare of the next-generation athletes – UK Coaching news article on their development of a set of safeguarding proposals for elite young athletes
• Under-fuelling athletes puts their health at risk – video highlighting why athletes are more susceptible to eating disorders and what sports can do to reduce and prevent them
• Youth physical development model – UK Coaching resource

Other useful resources and websites

• Spotting the signs of eating disorders is everyone's business – BEAT Eating Disorders guidance highlighting how to identify eating disorders
• Surviving abuse – BBC Radio 5 live broadcast – athletes and experts talk about abuse in elite sport and the impact of this abuse

Publications and reports

• Culture Health Check report (PDF) – UK Sport's 2017 report into the experiences of elite and talented young athletes within sport
• Overtraining syndrome and overuse injury in young athletes – research article
• Sport Duty of Care Review – independent review led by Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson