[5] It cannot indict or jail people accused of sexual misconduct, as it is neither a law enforcement agency nor a legal body of the U.S. judiciary; but it can impose sanctions up to a lifetime ban of a person from involvement in Olympic sports.
[12] The severity of abuse and misconduct can range from inappropriate conduct (such as butt slapping), to rape and forcible sexual assault.
[7] SafeSport maintains a public list of people under sanction who are believed to threaten U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes and affiliated organizations.
[6] SafeSport does not generally reveal the nature and severity of the alleged misconduct, the evidence gathered by investigators, and whatever aggravating or mitigating factors might have influenced an arbitrator's decision on appeal.
SafeSport defends its confidentiality policy, "which prohibits the sharing of documents related to a case, as designed to protect the privacy of everyone involved, including victims and witnesses.
For example, the Center does not publish the names of minors or individuals whose sanctions do not materially limit their ability to participate in sports.
[24] According to the December 2020 U.S. Government Accountability Office report, "from July 1, 2019, through June 30, 2020, the Center created 2,027 cases, but only 1,223 included claimant information.
"[24] The 2022 Yates Report by former US Attorney General Sally Yates, which was commissioned by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) in response to the 2021 NWSL abuse scandal, states that "according to a December 2020 SafeSport report, it investigated 1,509 claims from July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020.
"[25] According to the December 2020 U.S. Government Accountability Office report, the Center imposed sanctions in 262 cases during that period; in 71% consisting of some level of suspension or ineligibility.
[24] SafeSport explains that for the purpose of "maintain[ing] its legitimacy in [the] community, the center needs to be perceived as fair: tenacious in protecting young athletes while providing due process to those who face reputation-ruining allegations that might prevent them from competing or coaching.
"[6] The Center cannot indict or jail individuals accused of sexual misconduct, as it is neither a law enforcement agency nor a legal body of the U.S. judiciary, instead being a sports investigative body; however, it can forward its investigations to state and federal courts, which in turn can impose criminal penalties on the defendants.
"[12] SafeSport's 2022 annual report stated that since it was created in March 2017, it had used administrative closures in 4,500 out of 12,751 cases, and found violations in 1,720.
For example, the Center does not publish the names of minors or individuals whose sanctions do not materially limit their ability to participate in sports.
[12] SafeSport has been criticized for not being sufficiently independent from the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC), from which it receives most of its funding.
Senators Richard Blumenthal and Jerry Moran proposed measures to strengthen oversight of the SafeSport program in 2019, which were adopted in 2020.
"[29] In September 2020, SafeSport temporarily suspended Paralympic swimmer Robert Griswold for alleged misconduct, but he was reinstated on appeal one month later.
[35] He referred to what he called SafeSport's failure to carry out impartial and thorough investigations and ensure the safety of athletes it is charged with protecting.
[35] He highlighted the fact that despite serious outstanding allegations of sexual misconduct, sexual coercion, and other violent behaviors by former friends, peers, and current teammates, and an ongoing investigation, fencer Alen Hadzic was allowed to travel to the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 as an alternate, although he was forced to stay at a separate hotel due to an ongoing investigation.
[35] USA Fencing specifically prohibited him from staying at his teammates' hotel due to their complaints about Hadzic.
As long as the outcome of this investigation remains unresolved, USA Fencing is obligated to allow Hadzic to compete internationally.
For the past year, we have implemented a safety plan designed to protect athletes, coaches and staff at all tournaments at which Hadzic has been a participant.
While we await the conclusion of this protracted investigation, we will continue to put the safety of our athletes, coaches and staff above all else.
[1] In February 2022, in an ABC News' Nightline program on criticisms of SafeSport titled "Sports misconduct watchdog faces crisis of confidence," U.S.
"[6] SafeSport defends its confidentiality policy, "which prohibits the sharing of documents related to a case, as designed to protect the privacy of everyone involved, including victims and witnesses.
But, even with its flaws, the agency's protections against abuse appear superior to those in most of the other countries, where they do not exist, and the ineffective system operated previously by the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee and national sports federations.
The USA Today report also noted that SafeSport's administrative closures included coaches who were actively being sanctioned by their governing bodies, and due to SafeSport's exclusive jurisdiction, those governing bodies were required to end their sanctions, in some cases restoring licenses to coaches accused of abuse.
[1] Former U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates, who authored the report, suggested that the USSF not rely exclusively on SafeSport to investigate claims of abuse, and blamed the inaction by multiple governing bodies on the lack of jurisdictional clarity introduced by SafeSport's exclusive jurisdiction over abuse investigations.
[25] On July 19, 2023, 103 current and former U.S. Soccer senior and youth national team players representing the USSF Athlete's Council wrote an open letter to members of the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives critical of SafeSport and calling upon the legislative bodies to reform the organization.
If the victim decides not to go through the whole process again on appeal, the decision is automatically overturned, and the perpetrator is free to enter back into the sport.