Underrepresented Populations – Towards Understanding Creating More Positive Sport Spaces

The realm of sports encompasses a variety of stakeholders, including athletes, coaches, and officials, all of whom should operate in environments free from maltreatment. Recent research illuminates a concerning rise in all forms of maltreatment within sports ranging from physical, psychological to cyber harassment. Global initiatives are struggling to foster significant improvements in sporting environments, urging an intensified focus on empirical strategies that can drive effective changes.

This Research Topic seeks to contribute to the ongoing research towards understanding how to foster more positive sporting experiences for a variety of stakeholders. Our objective is to publish research that can substantiate actionable strategies for those working in sport to aid in improving the sporting environment.

We aim to deepen understanding and amplify discussions regarding those people working in sport and how to improve the spaces to which they experience sport. Our focus will extend to gather further insights into these boundaries and we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:
• Maltreatment experiences among various populations including disabled individuals and LGBTQI+ athletes.
• Effective prevention strategies for coaches and sports officials.
• Wellness programs that enhance safety for older adults and ethnic minorities in sports.
• Perspectives on safeguarding talented and young athletes.
• Inclusion strategies for military veterans and indigenous populations in sports settings

Keywords: maltreatment, safe sport, abuse, cyber related harassments, underrepresented groups

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.