Part 3 GLOBAL ISSUES: HARASSMENT AND ABUSE RESEARCH

Nineteen male swimming coaches participated in one of four focus groups,
and three additional coaches were interviewed separately. Males, rather than
females, were selected for this study not only because they are over represented in
coaching at the high school, 15 university 16 and elite levels 8, 17 but also because the
majority of reported sexual abuse is by male perpetrators. 18, 19 Brackenridge and
Kirby have hypothesised that athletes within the ‘stage of imminent achievement’
(high level athletes who have the potential to, but have not yet earned elite honours)
may be most vulnerable to coaches who groom them for sexual abuse. 20 Therefore,
males coaching swimmers within this age range for swimming (about 13 to 17 years
old) at international, national and developmental levels were selected for this study.
The coaches ranged in age from 27 to 67 years old, had been coaching for an
average of 17 years, and spent on average 22 hours a week coaching swimming.
In line with grounded theory techniques 21 our initial analysis of the focus
groups guided the selection of three swimming coaches (who had not participated in
the focus groups) for individual interviews. These coaches were purposively
selected to further our emerging understanding of coaches’ perceptions of
appropriateness and the effect of child protection measures on coaching. The three
coaches were selected on the following basis: the first had received a conviction for
sexually assaulting a female swimmer in his care; the second was in a committed
relationship with a swimmer who he was coaching; and the third had been
suspended (and then cleared) by the Amateur Swimming Association during an
investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct. Ethical considerations such as
confidentiality, researcher safety and procedures for dealing with new allegations of
abuse were all addressed prior to commencing data collection. 22 The procedures
used for the data collection and analysis are detailed elsewhere, and therefore are
13, 14, 23, 24
not repeated here.
Key findings
Perceptions of appropriateness
The results from this study indicate that these coaches first and foremost
based decisions of appropriateness about sexual relationships with swimmers on
the legal age of consent. All the coaches in this study agreed that sex with an
athlete under the age of consent in England (16 years old) would be unacceptable.
63
63