The Quest for Social Justice in Sport

Although social justice initiatives in education and the workplace have decades-long histories, sport has been slow to follow.

In the areas of sport policies, sport practices and sport scholarship, liberal/reform approaches dominate, while the structural roots of injustice - racism, colonialism, misogyny, disablism, homophobia and transphobia - remain largely unchanged. Use and misuse of sport sciences contributes to this pattern, and the Olympic industry serves as the machine driving these forces. Applying an intersectional analysis, the book examines issues of sex/gender/sexualities, disability, Global North/Global South disparities, doping, and violence in all its forms.

A discussion of action and outlaw sports as a route to empowerment is followed by an exploration of community-based initiatives and a model for physical activity that puts joy at the centre of human movement.