Has your child’s coach been banned by an Olympic organization? Many parents aren’t even aware there are lists of banned individuals. While the information national governing bodies publish varies widely, those lists can be just the beginning to finding out more.
Here’s how to get started:
1. Check the U.S. Center for SafeSport’s database.
You can search by name, location or sport. A few tips:
- Many entries are missing a location, so searches by sport are more reliable ways to check on an individual.
- Search by last name, since common first names can be listed differently by the Center (like Robert or Bob).
- Search by state instead of city, since the city listed for the individual might be different from where he or she coaches.
2. Check the banned lists made public by the national governing bodies; some offer more detailed information than others.
Links to those lists:
- USA Archery
- USA Badminton
- USA Basketball
- American Canoe
- USA Diving, permanently ineligible members
- USA Diving, suspended members
- US Equestrian
- USA Fencing: Go to https://www.usafencing.org/. Select athletes from the top menu and then SafeSport from the drop-down menu. Scroll down the page, and on the right is a link for “Ineligible and Suspended Members.”
- USA Field Hockey
- U.S. Figure Skating
- USA Gymnastics, permanently ineligible members
- USA Gymnastics, suspended members
- USA Judo
- US Rowing: From the top navigation menu, select SafeSport. Scroll to the bottom of the page to “Essential Resources.” From there, select “USRowing Banned Member List.”
- USA Softball
- US Speedskating: Select "About" from the top menu and then "SafeSport" from the drop-down menu. Under “Banned Individuals List,” select the link where it says, “Additionally, USS maintains a list of permanently USS banned coaches.”
- USA Swimming, permanently ineligible members
- USA Swimming, suspended members
- USA Table Tennis
- USA Taekwondo
- USA Track & Field
- USA Triathlon
- USA Volleyball
- USA Water Ski & Wake Sports: On the menu on the left side of the home page, select membership. “Suspended Member List” is the last link in the drop-down menu.
- USA Weightlifting
- USA Wrestling: Above the permanently ineligible list are links to membership suspension and interim membership suspension lists.
3. Contact the national governing body.
In many instances, they should be able to tell you if a coach is a current member and in good standing. They also should be able to tell you if a gym, club or facility is a member of their organization.
4. If you find a coach who is on one of these lists but continues to coach, please email us at: [email protected]
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