Founded in 2014, Safe Sport International is a UK registered charity and the first independent global organisation dedicated to preventing violence, harassment and abuse in sport. Its origins reach back to the feminist scholars, survivor advocates, and child‑protection practitioners who, from the 1970s onwards, challenged dominant narratives that portrayed sport as inherently safe, virtuous, and self‑regulating.

Working in environments of resistance and at times open hostility, early pioneers documented sexual harassment, abuse, discrimination, and structural power imbalances – often at significant personal and professional cost. Co-founders of SSI, Celia Brackenridge, Kari Fasting, Sandi Kirby and Anne Tiivas exposed systemic shortcomings and harmful cultures long before safeguarding in sport frameworks existed.