Abstract
Female, woman and/or girl athletes' sport participation rates are rising and associated with high injury rates and burden. Using best-practice consensus methodology, we developed recommendations to guide injury prevention for female/woman/girl athletes. The Female/woman/girl Athlete Injury pRevention (FAIR) International Olympic Committee Consensus meeting was held from 31 March to 2 April 2025 (Lausanne, Switzerland).The FAIR Consensus followed an eight-step hybrid method. 109 authors from six continents conducted: (1) systematic reviews synthesising evidence on injury prevention strategies and modifiable risk factors for lower-extremity and upper-extremity injuries, concussions and spine/chest/abdominal/pelvic injuries/pain, (2) a scoping review synthesising dissemination and implementation (D&I) approaches; and (3) a concept mapping project generating knowledge on gender/sex-related factors for injury prevention. These projects underpinned draft recommendations subsequently voted on by a steering committee (n=24) and an external advisory committee chair over two anonymous survey rounds. Recommendations, Round 1 voting results and suggestions/dissenting comments were discussed between Round 1 and 2 voting. Consensus was defined as 'critical to include' (≥70% scored recommendation as 7-9 (9-point Likert scale, 1=not important; 9=critically important) AND ≤15% scored recommendation as 1-3).The 56 FAIR recommendations address: primary injury prevention (n=16) (policy/rules/laws=6; personal protective equipment=8; training=2); secondary injury prevention (n=4); modifiable risk factors (n=12); approaches to D&I (n=14); and promoting gender/sex-supportive environments (n=10).The FAIR Consensus informs evidence-based best practices and policy for injury prevention, approaches to implementation and creation of supportive environments for female/woman/girl athletes. Every person at all levels of sport can, and should, take responsibility for actions that positively influence female/woman/girl athlete health and safety.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1546-1559 |
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Journal | British journal of sports medicine |
| Volume | 59 |
| Issue number | 22 |
| Early online date | 2 Dec 2025 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 3 Dec 2025 |
Data Availability Statement
Data can be made available upon reasonablerequest to the corresponding author. Please email the corresponding author with
a written proposal outlining the specific research aims and analysis plan and
why these specific data are needed. A formal data-sharing agreement between
institutions will be required
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to acknowledge the 109 coauthors from the seven evidence reviews (online supplemental file 3), and the members of our External Advisory Committee. We would also like to acknowledge the contribution of IOC members who attended the face-to-face meeting in Lausanne and provided valuable contribution to the discussions (Professor Roald Bahr, Dr Torbjørn Soligard, Kirsty Burrows), and the staff and students from La Trobe Sport and Exercise Medicine (Libby Gracias, Melissa Haberfield) and Sport Injury Prevention Research Centre (SIPRC), who assisted the authors with numerous tasks.Funding
Funding for the FAIR Consensus was provided by the International Olympic Committee to support methods authors, librarian and biostatistical support
Keywords
- Consensus
- Female
- Preventive Medicine
- Sporting injuries
- Women in sport
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Orthopedics and Sports Medicine
- Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation