World Athletics provided AI protection throughout the year on social media platforms to 25 athletes who were targeted by cyberbullying during a recent major event.
World Athletics has released the results of a four-year report analyzing online abuse in sports using Signify Group’s Threat Matrix service. The study monitored online activity during the 2021 and 2024 Olympic Games and the 2022 and 2023 World Athletics Championships.
World Athletics did not provide details on how the AI protection would work, but AI is often used to identify potential security threats and filter out inappropriate content on social media.
Of the findings, two serious cases were identified and reported to law enforcement authorities.
Of the more than 350,000 posts collected for analysis on X, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok during the Paris 2024 Olympics, 809 were confirmed to be abusive, of which 18% were racist. 13% were sexual in nature and 17% were sexist. Two athletes received 82% of all abuse.
In August, Jamaican sprinter Jenelle Bromfield spoke out about cyberbullying, including death threats, she received during the Paris Games over her relationship with Olympic 100m champion Noah Lyles.
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said: “The welfare of our athletes is at the top of our priority list and we will continue to take steps to ensure that our athletes can use social media platforms confidently and safely.”
Three of the top five athletes abused at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest were also among the top five most targeted athletes at the Paris Olympics.
During the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, held in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, approximately 240,000 posts were collected for analysis, of which 132 were confirmed to be abusive, of which 63% were It was aimed at female athletes.
A social media analysis of the 2023 World Championships in Budapest found that 35% of the abuse was racist, a 12-fold increase compared to last year’s World Championships in Eugene.
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World Athletics said it was the first time an international federation had conducted such a detailed analysis.
“Many athletes do not know how to respond to abusive comments online or how to protect themselves,” said World Athletics Commission President Valerie Adams.
“The more we continue to educate athletes about safety measures, the more athletes will feel comfortable flying the flag for their country and sport on the field and online.”
