World Athletics President Sebastian Coe has pledged full support to the Kenyan government in its fight against gender-based violence (GBV) and femicide, a crisis that has deeply impacted the nation’s sporting community.
The tragic deaths of former world record-holder Agnes Tirop and world mountain running champion Rebecca Cheptegei highlighted the urgent need for action.
Their cases, among over 100 femicide incidents reported between August and October 2024, underscored the vulnerability of female athletes and the broader challenge of GBV in Kenya.
In response, the National Government Affirmative Action Fund (NGAAF) partnered with Athletics Kenya (AK) to conduct a pilot study focused on tackling GBV within athletics.
The findings informed a comprehensive report titled ‘RESET— END GBV & Femicide Athletes Sectorial Engagement,’ developed in collaboration with Kenya’s Ministry of Gender, AK, and NGAAF.
The report, shaped by athlete engagements, identified key issues including financial exploitation, abuse by coaches and influential figures, lack of GBV awareness and threats to safety—especially for young female athletes.
To address these challenges, several strategic recommendations were put forward, including increased investment in GBV prevention, awareness and education campaigns, financial literacy and empowerment programs, stronger reporting mechanisms, accountability measures for coaches and support staff and enhanced security at training camps.
Coe expressed confidence in World Athletics’ role in safeguarding athletes, emphasizing that the issue goes beyond competition.
“The fact that both our Athletes’ Commission and our gender leadership task force have put the critical item on their agendas fills me with confidence in our stakeholders’ understanding that we have a responsibility that goes far be beyond what is happening on the field of play,” Coe noted.
“I look forward to working together with them on supporting our female athletes and to enshrine the results of this work in our safeguarding policies.”
In December 2024, the WA Council made a commitment to campaign against gender-based violence as a priority.
He reiterated WA’s commitment to working alongside Kenya in translating the report’s recommendations into concrete actions.
“There are many ways we at World Athletics can provide support, raise awareness and lend our skills, which we will be doing in the coming weeks and months as the Kenyan Government, together with AK, develop the report recommendations into concrete plans,” Coe noted.
