Safeguarding children and young people in Danish sport

Abstract

Almost two decades after media revelations about child sexual abuse in Danish sport first appeared, measures to safeguard and protect children and young people in sport remain underdeveloped and terms such as ‘child protection’ and ‘safeguarding’ are still not an active part of the vocabulary of organized sport in the country. Meanwhile, what limited political and legislative progress has been made in this area has tended to be driven by concerns about child sexual abuse; other forms of abuse and wider issues relating to safeguarding athletes and promoting children’s rights have yet to be addressed. This chapter charts how sport and the government in Denmark were first alerted to concerns about children’s welfare in sport, and how sport has moved from initial denial to begrudging acceptance of the problem. It discusses specific regulations enacted to protect athletes from abuse both in and beyond sport, primarily to safeguard against sexual abuse, and highlights the limitations of such approaches before touching on potential signs of change in the culture of Danish sport.