Punish the predator women coaches aren’t the answer to harassment
Allegations of sexual harassment levelled by two top cyclists against a senior coach, as well as complaints by a woman sailor, should be treated with utmost seriousness – but the Sports Authority of India is creating more problems with its responses. Mandating that all travelling women athletes must be accompanied by women coaches is an unprofessional policy, implying that men and women simply can’t work together in sports training. It also raises the question of whether there are enough women coaches. As problematic is the fact that an SAI internal complaints committee reportedly asked the cyclist who first accused the coach to file an FIR. There should be standard internal processes, where the committee follows up with the police, as the POSH Act specifies.Sexual harassment in sports isn’t an Indian problem. The US, for example, has had many cases and in some instances celebrated coaches were outed as predators. Just as in workplaces, the predator works the power hierarchy in his favour in sports training, and young women from low-income families are especially vulnerable. Sometimes, even being an established athlete doesn’t help. A cyclist with a good track record alleged she was let go after facing repeated harassment. Exemplary punishment to harassers, following a quick, fair inquiry, is the best deterrent. SAI and sports federations must not impose rules that are a throwback to times when gender segregation was the norm.
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