The USA Swimming community is proud of the Safe Sport program that we’ve worked to build over the last seven years.  Safe Sport’s mission is to inspire a culture of athlete and member protection at all levels of USA Swimming.

Today, we’re pleased to let you know of another positive step in our overall effort related to safety:  the opening of the U.S. Center for SafeSport. The Center is an effort of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic movement’s 47 national governing bodies, including USA Swimming.  More information on the Center can be found at safesport.org, and more information about USA Swimming’s Safe Sport Program can be found at www.usaswimming.org/protect.

The focus of the Center is to provide services in two areas:

(1) to provide prevention training and tools and;

(2) to act as an independent party to investigate and resolve allegations of sexual misconduct against any person within the jurisdiction of the national governing bodies, including USA Swimming.

As a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee, USA Swimming has agreed, effective July 1, 2017, to adhere to the Center’s policies and procedures, which include the Center’s SafeSport Code that identifies prohibited conduct and the procedures for investigating and resolving allegations. The Center will have exclusive authority and jurisdiction to investigate and resolve allegations involving sexual misconduct against any USA Swimming member or former USA Swimming member who is alleged to have engaged in sexual misconduct while a member. 

USA Swimming and the Center for Safe Sport require all members to report suspected Safe Sport violations related to or accompanying sexual misconduct to the Center for SafeSport. Information on reporting to the Center can be found at https://safesport.org/response-resolution/report.

The Center will have the jurisdiction and authority to impose sanctions against USA Swimming members (as well as members of other national governing bodies), and USA Swimming will enforce any suspension, measure or other sanction levied by the Center for SafeSport.

USA Swimming will retain the authority to investigate and resolve alleged violations of the USA Swimming Code of Conduct that are non‐sexual in nature including physical misconduct, emotional misconduct, bullying, hazing, and harassment.