Racism in top sports in Germany – Empirical findings from a qualitative interview study exploring the experiences of BIPoC top athletes

Introduction: Research about participation in sport often focuses on integration and only a small amount of research investigates whether and how racism manifests itself in sport. Although, experiences of racism have been researched internationally (e.g., Engh et al., 2017; Massao & Fasting, 2014), in Germany, it remains an unstudied topic in sport sociology. Moreover, racism is often regarded “as a marginal phenomenon characterized by individual, intentional and hostile acts” and not a structural phenomenon (Roig, 2017, p. 623).
Objectives: We understand racism not only as an ideology or an incident but also as a process and an overall structure and system of domination (Salem & Thompson, 2016). Consequently, we aim to explore the multiple and various ways in which BIPoC-athletes perceive and experience racism in top sports in Germany. In doing so, we refer to actor-theoretical perspectives (Schimank, 2010) as well as other theoretical approaches.
Method: Qualitative problem-centred interviews with BIPoC-athletes from various sports were conducted.
Findings: BIPoC-athletes report about a variety of different experiences of racism: e.g., undermining of the performance principle, racist labelling, and verbal abuse.
Discussion: The results disclose socio-structural elements and action-related moments of racism in top sports in Germany. However, athletes are reluctant to label these structures and actions as ‘racism’ due to manifold social
circumstances.
Conclusion: The development of discrimination-sensitive strategies is recommended to combat racism in top sports in Germany institutionally.