A commission charged with reviewing the Olympic system in the United States recommended Congress rework key facets of the U.S. Center for SafeSport, including making it completely independent of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee and reimagining the way it deals with cases in the grassroots.
The commission released its 275-page report Friday, also suggesting Congress create a new federal office to oversee grassroots sports that are now largely under the auspices of the USOPC, which could then focus on its central objective of supporting high-performance athletes and Olympic teams.
“We need a better long-term vision for how we organize Olympic- and Paralympic-movement sports in America,” the commission wrote as part of its conclusion. “One that ensures participants’ safety, promotes equitable access, and holds governing systems accountable through transparency and a commitment to due process.”
Currently, the SafeSport Center, which was established in 2017 to oversee sex-abuse cases in Olympic sports, receives around $20 million annually from the USOPC and its sports affiliates.
“The $20 million annually that USOPC must currently provide to SafeSport should instead be reinvested in improving conditions for our high-performance athletes so they will be less vulnerable to abuse,” the report said.
The report also published polling information, previously reported by The Associated Press, that found 25.4% of 1,752 respondents found the SafeSport Center to be “not so effective” or “not effective at all.” Another 41.4% said it was only “somewhat effective.”
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games