Official announcements from World Athletics or press releases

World Athletics Provides AI Protection to 25 Athletes After 82% of Abuse at Paris 2024 Olympics

Dec 19, 2024, 02:13 PM

World Athletics has introduced year-round artificial intelligence (AI) protection on social media platforms for 25 athletes who were identified as targets of cyberbullying during recent major events. This initiative follows a comprehensive four-year study that analyzed online abuse in athletics, covering two Olympic Games and two World Athletics Championships. The study, which utilized Signify Group's Threat Matrix service, examined over 1.4 million posts or comments, protecting 2,438 athletes. During the Paris 2024 Olympics, two athletes received 82% of all recorded abuse, with 18% of the verified abuse being racist, 13% sexual in nature, and 17% sexist. World Athletics President Sebastian Coe emphasized the organization's commitment to athlete welfare and ongoing efforts to ensure safe engagement with social media.