This was the question explored by the project team of Building European Safe Sport Together 2.0 (BESST 2.0) during their second project meeting in early February 2026 at the University of Twente in the Netherlands.
In sports contexts, many statements and language have become normalised that, in other environments, would more readily be recognised as transgressive behaviour. Phrases such as “You’re too sensitive” in a sports-context may appear harmless or even well-intended, yet they blur boundaries, reinforce power imbalances, and undermine confidence by causing individuals to doubt their own perceptions. Its impact is often downplayed, and this ambiguity allows for plausible deniability.
Of course, context and non-verbal language are important in interpreting a phrase like this. Nevertheless, BESST 2.0 seeks to raise awareness that, also in sport, language like this fall into the grey zone of potentially harmful behaviour in sport.
The project team is currently developing a virtual reality experience scheduled for completion this summer. Through several scenarios, athletes, coaches, and their entourage will be able to immerse into a sport scene involving psychological transgressive behaviour. Some scenarios depict clear cases, while others intentionally present more ambiguous situations.
“The inclusion of both black-and-white and grey-zone scenarios in our VR tool is designed to build understanding of the issue,” explains Sönke Schadwinkel, project coordinator from the European Olympic Academies. “Especially the grey scenarios help to build awareness of how certain statements can affect another person psychologically. By using VR, we not only expect high interest to engage with taboo topics such as psychological pressure or even bullying, but also that perspective-taking may encourage to reflect more carefully on someone’s own communication in the future.”
From summer onward, the VR experience is planned to be found at various sporting events across Europe. These include several European championships in volleyball, ju-jitsu, and field hockey, as well as a number of multi-sport events. The BESST 2.0 team will offer workshops, and visitors will also have the opportunity to try the VR experience directly at event booths.
Sports organisations interested in featuring the BESST 2.0 VR experience at their events and contributing to safer sport in Europe are welcome to contact the team at info@eoaolympic.org.