Emotional Abuse in College Sports

March Madness has arrived, bringing the intense, sudden-death college basketball tournament that is a cherished tradition in American sports. For the athletes, it represents an opportunity to display the skills honed through years of rigorous physical and mental training. Often, this drive leads to extraordinary athletic achievements. However, an investigation by reporters Julia Haney and Elizabeth Santos reveals that in some cases, the pressure from coaches crosses a line. Several athletes allege that emotional abuse by coaches has caused lasting, sometimes irreparable harm.

On this episode of The Sunday Story, we hear from athletes who have stood up against such abuse.

*Warning: This story contains mentions of sexual and emotional abuse, suicide, bullying, and explicit language.*

This episode was produced by Andrew Mambo, edited by Jenny Schmidt, fact-checked by Katie Daugert, and engineered by Jimmy Keeley.

We welcome your feedback. Please email us at [email protected].

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Special thanks to the Audio Program and Investigative Reporting Program at the University of California Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, and to Shereen Marisol Meraji for production support.

Reporters for this story participated in the Mental Health Parity Collaborative, a coalition of newsrooms covering mental health care access and inequities in the U.S. Partners include The Carter Center and select newsrooms nationwide.