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October 6, 2023
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes’ Commission has announced that a dedicated mental health helpline will be available for all Paris 2024 Olympians and Paralympians. Operating 24/7, it covers 70 languages, is fully confidential and will be accessible for the entire Olympiad (four-year period). The announcement was made as part of a range of outcomes from the International Athletes’ Forum 2023 (IAF) which took place in Lausanne, Switzerland from October 1-2.
The Commission ensures that athletes’ viewpoints remain at the heart of the Olympic Movement and decisions, with a focus on safety and wellbeing. A survey conducted in 2022 among the Athlete365 community – inclusive of more than 130,000 professional athletes and staff supported by the IOC’s Athlete365 platform – showed that one-in-five athletes had suffered poor mental health in the last year. Research undertaken in 2021 revealed that anxiety and depression alone affect around 45% of current elite athletes and 26% of former elite athletes. About 35% of elite athletes will suffer a mental health crisis, which may manifest as stress, eating disorders, anxiety, depression or drug use.
Mental health has been spotlighted in the last few years and the IAF was a chance for representatives from the National Olympic Committees, International Federations, the World Anti-Doping Agency and the International Paralympic Committee, among others, to discuss the direct support needed for athletes. In addition to the helpline, athletes will also be offered a one-year premium subscription to a leading mindfulness app to improve their sleep, enhance focus or alleviate anxiety for example. This will launch on Athlete365 on World Mental Health Day on October 10.
Athlete mental health is a key priority for the IOC. In 2021, it announced two initiatives to “inspire and support the Olympic Movement in fostering safe sport and athlete wellbeing worldwide by 2030.” Both projects are part of the practical implementation of Recommendation 5 of Olympic Agenda 2020+5, which is part of a commitment to developing programs and initiatives to ensure that every athlete can train and compete in a safe sporting environment.
This new mental health helpline offering expands on the IOC’s previous efforts through its Mentally Fit Helpline, which was available for athletes at the Tokyo 2020 Summer Games and Beijing 2022 Winter Games. It provided athletes with a confidential and professional mental health support service before, during and up to three months after the Games had concluded.
Additional initiatives that were raised from the Forum included the ‘Safeguarding Officer in Sport’ program for Commission members to become safe sport ambassadors. This will include dedicated safeguarding workshops with the intention of increasing safety measures for all Olympic athletes. A study published by World Athletics covering the Tokyo Olympic Games showed that female athletes were the target of 87% of all abuse – the most common being sexist and racist. This new program intends to protect and shield athletes from all kinds of abuse, creating a safe sporting environment for all.
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