Exploring the business case for prioritising athlete safety in community sport: a Delphi study

Christopher Yorke; Michelle O’Shea; Daniel Roman; Mike Rayner

doi:10.1080/23750472.2025.2506615

Exploring the business case for prioritising athlete safety in community sport: a Delphi study

Christopher Yorke
, Michelle O’Shea
, Daniel Roman
, Mike Rayner

School of Business

University of Portsmouth

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

3 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Drawing on the Delphi method, and notwithstanding the moral and legal imperatives tied to safe sport, this research note explores the business case for prioritising athlete safety in community sport. Drawing on rugby union as a case study context, the study salience is set against growing concerns associated with collision sport and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). CTE is a neurodegenerative pathology associated with traumatic brain injury linked to neurodegenerative disease among athletes, including former rugby union players (Russell, E. R., Mackay, D. F., Lyall, D., Stewart, K., MacLean, J. A., Robson, J., Pell, J. P., & Stewart, W. (2022). Neurodegenerative disease risk among former international rugby union players. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, 93(12), 1262–1268).

Original language	English
Number of pages	6
Journal	Managing Sport and Leisure
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1080/23750472.2025.2506615
Publication status	E-pub ahead of print (In Press) - 2025

Keywords

athlete safety
business case
Concussion
medical package

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10.1080/23750472.2025.2506615Licence: CC BY-NC-ND

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Cite this

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title = "Exploring the business case for prioritising athlete safety in community sport: a Delphi study",

abstract = "Drawing on the Delphi method, and notwithstanding the moral and legal imperatives tied to safe sport, this research note explores the business case for prioritising athlete safety in community sport. Drawing on rugby union as a case study context, the study salience is set against growing concerns associated with collision sport and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). CTE is a neurodegenerative pathology associated with traumatic brain injury linked to neurodegenerative disease among athletes, including former rugby union players (Russell, E. R., Mackay, D. F., Lyall, D., Stewart, K., MacLean, J. A., Robson, J., Pell, J. P., \& Stewart, W. (2022). Neurodegenerative disease risk among former international rugby union players. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery \& Psychiatry, 93(12), 1262{\textendash}1268).",

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AU - O’Shea, Michelle

AU - Roman, Daniel

AU - Rayner, Mike

PY - 2025

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AB - Drawing on the Delphi method, and notwithstanding the moral and legal imperatives tied to safe sport, this research note explores the business case for prioritising athlete safety in community sport. Drawing on rugby union as a case study context, the study salience is set against growing concerns associated with collision sport and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). CTE is a neurodegenerative pathology associated with traumatic brain injury linked to neurodegenerative disease among athletes, including former rugby union players (Russell, E. R., Mackay, D. F., Lyall, D., Stewart, K., MacLean, J. A., Robson, J., Pell, J. P., & Stewart, W. (2022). Neurodegenerative disease risk among former international rugby union players. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, 93(12), 1262–1268).

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KW - Concussion

KW - medical package

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DO - 10.1080/23750472.2025.2506615

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SN - 2375-0472

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ER -

Exploring the business case for prioritising athlete safety in community sport: a Delphi study

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Keywords

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