Suicides among U.S. college athletes have doubled over the past twenty years, according to data from the National Collegiate Athletic Association .
For the study, Whelan and colleagues analyzed suicides among NCAA athletes from June 2002 to June 2022. Suicides among males increased each year throughout the study period, while suicides among females increased from 2010 onwards. The highest number of suicides was among male cross-country athletes and among the more competitive division I and II athletes, compared with division III athletes, results show.Suicides also were more common during the school year, with an average of 12 per month compared with less than seven per month in the summer, results show.The data didn’t include any information that might explain why athletes might commit suicide, the researchers noted.