Press release
Gatorade Endurance Survey Finds 'Safety Concerns' As Primary Barrier For Minority Entry Into Endurance Sports
Over two-thirds of minority athletes interested but not active in endurance sports said that seeing others like them participate would make them much more
About this update from Pepsico, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"Over two-thirds of minority athletes interested but not active in endurance sports said that seeing others like them participate would make them much more likely to get involved\n\n\nCHICAGO, Aug. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Gatorade Endurance released results from a survey* designed to identify and understand the barriers minority athletes (specifically People of Color, Black, LGBTQ+ and Disabled) face when considering participation in endurance sports, and how to overcome these barriers. Among the key findings, safety concerns – i.e., getting injured, hate crimes, not wanting to train alone and having a safe training location – were the top barriers within all four groups who are interested but do not participate in endurance sports. Gatorade Endurance launched a new page on its website with resources to help athletes overcome the barriers uncovered in the survey.\n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n\"We are committed to fostering inclusivity within the endurance sports community, and the first step was to better understand the complexities around the current environment and potential barriers so we can affect real change,\" said Kalen Thornton, chief marketing officer at Gatorade. \"Personally, I've witnessed the opportunities that exist from my own experience in marathons and cycling. I was someone who never thought they would ever run 26.2, but through partnerships with run crews and clubs I realized there was far more diverse representation among these communities. Our survey and online resources do not represent a solution or the end of our journey, it is a building point for us and voices in the endurance community. We hope it helps provide new perspectives that can lead to conversation and transformation.\"\nDEEPER LOOKTo help understand the safety concerns for each of the four groups who are interested in but do not participate in endurance sports, they were asked what exact safety concerns hindered their participation. \nNearly half (45%) of People of Color respondents said that safety concerns are one of their top barriers mainly because of having no safe location to train and compete, hate crimes (i.e., gender-based violence, racism), unreliable and/or unsafe transportation and not having the proper equipment to train and/or compete safely. Two in five (38%) of Black respondents said that safety concerns are one of their top bar...