Time for mental healthcare guidelines for recreational sports: a call to action

The mental health of professional athletes has become an important and visible global issue requiring strong and immediate action. Major organisations and governing bodies in sport psychology and sport science have published 10 position stands and statements on mental health in sport since 2016 (see table 1). These position stands and statements explicitly address, or emphasise, elite athletes (as defined by Swann et al ).1 None of the position stands, consensus statements, or guidelines directly address athletes that could be considered subelite participants–for example, standards below talent development programmes or university-level participation.1 These existing position stands exclude organised recreational sports where the vast majority of individuals participate.2 3 We call on sporting organisations and relevant professional bodies to urgently enact policy in regard to mental healthcare in recreational sport—which encompasses all sports participation outside of those who are investing or specialising in one or a few sports with the intended outcome of elite performance.4 View this table: Table 1 Existing statements on mental health in sport At least 40% of children and adolescents in a majority of countries worldwide, and approximately 20% of all adults globally, participate in organised recreational sports.2 3 Fewer than …