Fear of reporting abuse. The signs of a discomfort to recognize, to intervene promptly. The willingness to listen and even accept painful stories, without judging. And the commitment that no girl or boy should experience situations of violence, physical or verbal, in everyday life and in the environment in which they practice sport.
These are the stages outlined at the meeting “Together against abuse in sport”, which took place this afternoon in the prestigious Sala Alessi at Palazzo Marino in Milan. Promoted by ChangeTheGame with the patronage of the Municipality of Milan, the event saw the participation of sports associations operating in the Milan area and their representatives, managers and technicians, as well as children and families. An appointment that presented the phenomenon of abuse in the sports environment at 360 degrees, starting with the different areas and the many ways in which unfortunately they can manifest themselves, so as to be able to define them correctly and anticipate the appropriate path to stop them.
To this end, the experience developed by ChangeTheGame, a voluntary organization that has been committed for years to combating the phenomenon of physical, emotional and sexual violence in sport, is of great help both through training courses, toolkits and awareness campaigns, and by promoting digital tools accessible to all, such as the online “Ti Ascolto” desk, developed in collaboration with the Vero Volley Consortium.
Martina Riva, Councilor for sport of the City of Milan, kicked off the meeting with a welcome to those present: “Good evening everyone, today we have the opportunity to explore a delicate issue that concerns all boys and girls who practice sporty. The three women on stage today, with great experience in their fields, will try to rationalize from many points of view a problem that unfortunately is still present on the playing fields today. It is a delicate matter which, however, must be investigated in detail to promote correct prevention, for this I sincerely thank Daniela, Paola and Alessandra for their presence here today”.
