The revelations about illegal behavior in the sports world follow in quick succession. No sport seems to escape the fact that top sports companies also have clear downsides, whereby the human aspect has regularly receded completely into the background.

Sports umbrella organization NOC*NSF has made tackling cross-border behavior a top priority and will link funding for elite sport to integrity plans.

Various sports associations and organizations have set to work to create a safe sports climate for athletes and coaches. However, a tour of various sports organizations gives the impression that this one great solution does not (yet) exist.

“Do not adjust ambition”

“We shouldn’t adjust our ambitions or train hard. That is part of top-class sport.

The statement was made by Inge Janssen, Chair of the NOC*NSF Athletes Committee. “Achievements are great, that’s what top-class sport is all about. But that must never be at the expense of a good sports climate.”

Top sport in the Netherlands mostly takes place in the national training center Papendal, where the umbrella organization NOC*NSF has made enormous investments in recent years to enable top Dutch athletes to catch up with the world’s best.

With success, because the Netherlands celebrated great successes in both winter and summer sports at the last Olympic Games.

top ten

Tokyo took the crown last year with no fewer than 36 medals (10 gold, 12 silver and 14 bronze), a number that not so long ago could not even have been dreamed of. The path trodden for around thirteen years under Technical Director Maurits Hendriks, who retired in April, saw the Netherlands finish in the top ten in the Olympic medal standings, unprecedented for such a small country.

Hendrik’s successor André Cats does not want to give up his high ambitions. Not even because of the revelations about cross-border behavior, which started with gymnastics in the summer of 2020 and then also touched on hockey, triathlon, soccer, rowing and track and field.

“You can just excel, try to be the best in the world in a respectful way where everyone feels safe,” Cats believes.

The question arises whether the medal factory in Papendal has not overshot the mark given the large number of files the Center for Safe Sport Netherlands has been dealing with this year on transgressive behavior in sport. The number of files will exceed a thousand in 2022.

Many cases come from grassroots sport, but this year the number of cases in elite sport exceeds 140. Elite athletes appear to have become much more vocal in recent years, perhaps due in part to the global #MeToo movement that has sprung up against sexually abusive behavior.

Code of Conduct

“It goes in all directions,” says Inge Janssen. “It also makes the conversation about it complicated. It’s crazy that it used to be like that. I think that’s where everything comes together: What is a sporting climate in which the athlete is also seen as a person?”

Janssen advocates a code of conduct in elite sport. “You also notice that there aren’t any in certain procedures. If there are no guidelines and standards at all, you cannot hold people accountable for their behavior.”

When Cats was appointed to succeed Hendriks, a safe sporting climate was an important part of the discussions he had with NOC*NSF. The Sportdom is also taking action, but various parties have not waited for that.

Neglected

Director General Erik Gerritsen and the ice hockey association KNHB responded to allegations against national coach Alyson Annan about an unsafe sports climate in the Dutch women’s team in search of answers, as was the case with other sports associations.

He got a little startled. “This information was not available when we asked. Top-class sport has apparently completely neglected that.”

The ice hockey association is now working on a personnel manager for top-class sport. The vision on elite sport has been adjusted, where performance leads, but the track must also be valuable. In addition, the club wants to gain insight into the well-being of the athletes via a specially developed app. “A digital feel-good check that we will be using next year for the men’s and women’s national teams and for all our teams,” explains Gerritsen.

Sports psychologist Yara van Gendt is now part of the ice skating team IKO. A unique overall mental approach integrated into the team structure.

“My goal is to be accessible in the sports world. Every two weeks I have conversations with the drivers about their studies, their work, their relationship with trainers. You can never completely prevent it, but that way we can be there earlier.” . We can work together more preventatively,” she says.

Former national players

The Dutch women’s water polo team takes a different approach. Marga van Feggelen and Madeline van Heemstra are former internationals and the squad’s emergency numbers. You do the judging moments. “We played in Orange ourselves, so we know what we’re talking about. Through our conversations, they can express their feelings, tell them everything that they wouldn’t do with their own coach.”

Top sports director Arno Havenga, former national water polo coach, is happy about the support. “Top-class sport differs from everyday life on the street. It’s nice to have people who know that.

What unites the unions is the attempt to ensure a safe sports climate. Havenga: “We have created the basis on which this is possible. It contributes to good togetherness.”

Cats supports any attempt by unions to take action against transgressive behavior. “Top sport pushes boundaries. If you want to be the best of eight billion people, you also have to keep in mind that this is no cakewalk, you have to face bumps and have confrontational conversations. You can and should always do that in a respectful, humane way.”