Cover Photo: Azman Ghani
Photo: Azman Ghani
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Having faced sexual harassment as a teen, the ex-national gymnast now advocates comprehensive athlete safety against abuse
Since she was 12 years old, Sarina Sundara Rajah’s world revolved around rhythmic gymnastics. Through extraordinary talent, discipline and dedication to the sport, she and team members Carolyn Au-Yong, Regina Tajudin, and Thye Chee Kiat took home the gold for Malaysia in 1998 at the Commonwealth Games and again three years later at the SEA Games 2001 with team mates Celestie Chan and Goh Yi We.
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Rhythmic gymnastics remains an integral part of her life today. She’s the founder of Sarina Rhythmic Gymnastics Club, which works to empower women and girls through the sport, raise awareness about the positive influence of physical activity and sports for women and girls, and increase the participation of women and girls involved in the sport movement across the region.
Above Sarina (left) and her teammates with their gold medals at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur
Sarina (left) and her teammates with their gold medals at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur
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Beyond helping gymnasts reach their peak potential, Sarina devotes much of her time to improving the Malaysian sports ecosystem, particularly where athletes’ safety and wellbeing are concerned.
Her NGO, Safe Sport Malaysia, is dedicated to creating a sports community where participants can train and compete without fear of physical, psychological or sexual misconduct. As a young athlete herself, Sarina recalls experiencing sexual harassment at 14 during a sports camp when a male athlete forced her to take an item that he placed on his private part. She also recollects other incidents that made her highly uncomfortable, though she didn’t know how to react at the time.
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“Sadly, my own experiences are nothing compared to what other female athletes have experienced, from coaches bringing them back to their homes for ‘additional training’ to knocking on the doors of their hotel rooms at night during overseas tournaments,” she says. “Child abuse is often perpetrated in isolated, one-on-one situations. Therefore, an important aspect of a much larger comprehensive abuse prevention strategy is limiting one-on-one interactions between adults and minor athletes to help reduce the risk.”
Through her work at Safe Sport Malaysia, Sarina often speaks out against a sports culture that normalises abuse. She refers to a video clip that went viral earlier this year that depicted a coach with the Melaka Under-14 Girls’ volleyball team slapping two of his players. After further investigation, the Malaysia Volleyball Association revoked the individual’s coaching licence. However, the team–and the parents of one of the girls–reportedly urged netizens to stop sharing the video, claiming their support and loyalty to their coach.
“It’s very risky for athletes to come forward and report abuse,” Sarina says. “Especially when there’s no safe reporting mechanism in place. Many athletes have recounted how they’ve experienced this resistance mindset, whereby no one believes their story. So when they say, ‘I’ve been abused’, immediately, the sports organisations try to defend themselves in an effort to uphold their integrity. In such cases of abuse, the first thing they want to do is to prioritise the reputation of the organisation instead of the wellbeing of victims and survivors of abuse.”
“There’s a lack of a trauma-informed approach that ensures that the victims coming forward are protected from the beginning to the end of the investigation, to the point where they feel like it’s not worth the pain and suffering of trying to seek help because when they do, they’ll be re-traumatised.”
On March 15, the Malaysian Ministry of Youth and Sports launched the Safe Sport Code, a guideline aimed at providing a safe environment for all stakeholders in sporting activities by outlining the responsibilities of all stakeholders in dealing with any form of harassment and abuse.
“It’s necessary, but it’s not enough,” Sarina comments about the Safe Sport Code. “It serves as an interim measure, establishing the standard of safe behaviour for everyone in sports. But it doesn’t come with any kind of enforcement. Any violation of the code would fall under the provisions of any current legislation. And our current laws are insufficient to address abuse in sports comprehensively.
“The Penal Code, The Anti Sexual Harassment Bill, and The Sexual Offences Against Children Act all offer very general and limited remedies, especially for athletes in sports. That’s why we need a specific law dealing with abuse in a sports setting. We need a law to cover all the legal loopholes to ensure that we have comprehensive protection and to provide new remedies currently unavailable to all sports participants.”
Above (Photo: Azman Ghani)
(Photo: Azman Ghani)
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It's possible to expect excellence in sports without normalising abuse.
According to Sarina, the proposed Safe Sport Bill, which the ministry decided not to table in parliament, would afford the authority and scope to address abuse and misconduct in sports beyond the national level, with measures that included expanded mandatory reporting of suspected abuse, providing whistleblower protection to prevent retaliation, and an increased standard of care at grassroots and community levels.
“Everyone has a crucial role in supporting efforts for legislative action to address abuse in sport, including laws addressing the reporting process, survivors’ rights, and law enforcement responsibilities. As human beings, we all want to feel safe. It’s important for people to understand that sports abuse is a violation of human rights. So it’s not just a ‘sports issue’. It’s a human rights issue.”
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Previously contributing to Esquire Malaysia, Expat Lifestyle and Newsweek, Tania oversees digital stories across Tatler’s key content pillars, also leading the Front & Female platform exploring issues and topics affecting women today.
