Homophobia is putting off students from participating in university sports, a report by the National Union of Students (NUS) has found. Only one third of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students play organised team sports at college or university, while 14.3 per cent of those surveyed said that experiences of homophobia, biphobia, or transphobia meant that they did not want to take part.
The figures suggest that the problems begin at school: over 40 per cent of those surveyed cited a negative experience prior to further education as a reason for not wanting to participate.
37.8 per cent of LGBT students who do play university team sports said that they were not open about their sexuality with teammates and coaches. One in five said that this was due to fears about receiving verbal or physical abuse. Nearly 13 per cent were concerned that they would be ostracised within the team, not get picked or be ejected.