LONDON: The Gymnastics Ethics Foundation (GIE), the sport’s international investigations agency, issued new safeguarding standards on Thursday to better protect athletes from abuse and harassment, with a view to the 2024 and 2028 Olympic Games.

The “Gymnasts 2028” framework aims to support and protect abuse survivors and whistleblowers, implement better mechanisms to report, manage and investigate complaints, and work with national federations to improve governance.

“The timeframe ... allows for impactful action leading up to the Paris 2024 and Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, which are both seen as critical benchmark moments for the sport of gymnastics and wider issues concerning ethics, integrity and safety in global sport,” the GEF said.

The foundation was created by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) in 2019 after the sexual abuse scandal involving Larry Nassar, the former USA Gymnastics doctor serving decades in prison for abusing hundreds of young female athletes.

Published in Dawn, March 25th, 2023