OUR STORY

Fostering respect.
Ending abuse in sport.

As reports of sexual abuse in amateur sport made headlines in the 2010s, it had become clear: America deserved a safer sport culture.

To achieve this, a new paradigm anchored by a new organization would be needed. Authorized by Congress to help abuse prevention, education, and accountability take root in every sport, on every court. Dedicated solely to ending sexual, physical, and emotional abuse on behalf of athletes everywhere.

From this need, the U.S. Center for SafeSport was created.

Safe Sport Act

The Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and Safe Sport Authorization Act of 2017 codified the U.S. Center for SafeSport, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, as the nation’s safe sport organization. It gave us the scope and authority to resolve abuse and misconduct reports for more than 11 million individuals throughout the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Movement—from whom we are fully independent.

The Act also charged us with developing and enforcing policies, procedures, and training to prevent abuse and misconduct. The Center’s SafeSport Code governs all participants in the Movement, and our oversight authority helps us ensure all Olympic & Paralympic national governing bodies (NGBs) adhere to Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies (MAAPP) that support athlete safety.

Expanding Quickly, To Serve Growing Needs

As demand has escalated for our work—underscored by more than 7,000 abuse and misconduct reports for us to resolve since 2017—we’ve built many routes to ending abuse in sport.

We’ve delivered more than 5 million online trainings, created 12 new courses, and developed scores of abuse-prevention resources. We’ve increased our Investigations staff by over 400% in two years to better manage caseload, and developed an audit and compliance program that has audited every NGB and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee. This year we launched a three-year strategic plan that holds us to a high standard of accountability, as we ask of those we serve.

Empowering Olympic, Paralympic, and Amateur Athletes Act

In late 2020, a game-changing federal law was passed—the Empowering Olympic, Paralympic, and Amateur Athletes Act of 2020—that strengthens safeguards for athletes. The Act strengthens the Center’s oversight functions and mandates a reliable annual funding stream from the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee to bolster our long-term sustainability.

We are encouraged by the groundswell of attention toward athlete safety, and the meaningful progress our allies are making with us to reduce abuse in sport. We will not rest until we can ensure that every athlete everywhere is safe, supported, and strengthened.