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World Athletics publishes ground-breaking four-year analysis into online abuse

The World Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has released a comprehensive four-year analysis (2019-2022) on online abuse in athletics, revealing a disturbing trend of increasing harassment, particularly targeting female athletes. The study, which examined over 300,000 social media posts, found that 87% of abusive posts were directed at women, with the abuse often being sexualized, misogynistic, or related to body shaming. The report highlighted that the abuse peaked during major events like the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, with a significant portion of the vitriol coming from anonymous accounts. It also noted that while male athletes were not immune, the nature of abuse they received was less sexualized but included threats and insults. The AIU has called for stronger measures to protect athletes, including better social media platform policies, athlete education on managing online abuse, and potential legal actions against perpetrators. The findings underscore the urgent need for a cultural shift in how athletes, especially women, are treated online.

Read the Full worldathletics Article at:
[ https://worldathletics.org/news/press-releases/four-year-analysis-online-abuse-athletics ]