Julie Ann Rivers-Cochran
Recently, the U.S. Center for SafeSport permanently banned Paralympic swimmer Robert Griswold for allegedly sexually assaulting a teammate with autism. This marked an important moment of accountability and highlights the complex vulnerabilities that athletes face.
For decades, athletes who experienced abuse in sport were often expected to report it to the very institutions responsible for managing teams and competitions. That system failed survivors, again and again. Independent oversight through SafeSport was created precisely because self-policing in sport had proven incapable of protecting athletes.
Actions like this matter. When SafeSport investigates allegations and removes individuals who violate athlete safety standards, it sends a clear signal that misconduct will not be ignored and that survivors who come forward will be taken seriously.
But this case also highlights a deeper issue that the sports world must confront. Some athletes face significantly higher risks of harm. Athletes with disabilities, even Paralympic competitors, can be particularly vulnerable to abuse. They may rely more heavily on coaches, trainers, or teammates for assistance. They may also encounter barriers to reporting harm or being believed. These dynamics can create opportunities for individuals who seek out gaps in safeguarding systems.
As we have seen across communities, persons with disabilities are often purposefully targeted because of actual or perceived vulnerabilities. Studies show that people with disabilities are four to 10 times as likely to face abuse. The world of sport needs to take this increased risk into account and provide additional safeguards and resources that are meaningful for athletes with disabilities.
Abuse in sport is often about power and access. And this case underscores something the sports world has historically struggled to acknowledge: Harm in sport does not occur only between coaches and athletes. Abuse can also happen between athletes themselves.
Power and control can emerge in many types of relationships — between teammates, training partners, or others within the athletic ecosystem. It happens in environments where boundaries are unclear, oversight is weak, or vulnerabilities exist.
All athletes, especially those with disabilities, deserve safeguards that reflect those realities. This includes training about power and control in sport, comprehensive guidelines for athlete-athlete contact, and trauma-informed reporting systems that include multidisciplinary collaboration with the disability rights movement.
The decision to remove someone who violates athlete safety standards is necessary. But accountability after the fact is not the same as prevention.
Preventing abuse requires proactive safeguards across every level of sport. National governing bodies, teams, and local clubs must ensure that clear boundaries exist between athletes and teammates, that reporting systems are accessible and trauma-informed, and that athletes and families understand their rights and how to raise concerns safely. These prevention strategies need to consider the complex nature of sport and must include athletes with disabilities as well as athlete-to-athlete abuse.
Education is equally critical. Athletes should be taught what healthy relationships in sport look like, how to recognize grooming behaviors, and how to seek help without fear of retaliation.
SafeSport’s enforcement role is essential to rebuilding trust in the system. But enforcement alone cannot solve the problem. True safety in sport comes from environments where transparency, education, and strong boundaries make abuse far harder to perpetrate in the first place.
The ultimate goal is not simply banning individuals after harm occurs. It is building a sports culture where every athlete, including those with disabilities, can train, compete, and pursue their dreams in environments designed to protect them.
About the author: Julie Ann Rivers-Cochran, MSW, is executive director of The Athlete Survivors’ Assist and a resident of Traverse City.
She is an international leader in preventing and addressing abuse in sports. As executive director of The Athlete Survivors’ Assist (The Assist), she leads efforts to bring awareness, accountability, and transparency to sexual violence against athletes at all levels.