ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the autonomous nature of sport, including its ability to self-govern and regulate without accountability, as a contributor to the occurrence, perpetuation, and silencing of gender-based violence in children’s sport. This autonomy, which insulates sport from broader societal changes and norms with respect to expected conduct with children, contributes to the perpetuation of harmful and normalised practices in sport. When concerns are raised about experiences of violence, this autonomy enables sport organisations to make their own rules, determine their own threshold for acceptable versus unacceptable behaviours, decide whether to investigate complaints and apply sanctions. Without the benefit of outside influences and accountability, there is a tendency to reproduce harmful practices that are incongruent with those used in other child-populated domains. As a result, sport runs the risk of causing harms to children and falling behind changes occurring in broader society.
