The Ins and Outs of SafeSport In March of 2017, the U.S. Center for SafeS-


port opened its doors in Denver, Colorado. T e fi rst of its kind, the Center is a national non- profi t focused on preventing all forms of abuse in sport. Specifi cally, the Center provides inde- pendent response and resolution services across the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic movements, which include all 29 breeds and disciplines governed by the U.S. Equestrian Federation. Over the past two years, the USEF and those


governing bodies that fall under it, such as the U.S. Eventing Association and U.S. Hunter/ Jumper Association, have been sending notices to offi cials and members about how to comply with the SafeSport mandates and codes of conduct. As the Center continues to develop and amend these requirements, many equestrian athletes are left wondering what SafeSport is and who ex- actly has to undergo the mandated training.


What is SafeSport?


On February 14, 2018, President Trump signed into Federal Law S 534, the Protect- ing Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and Safe Sport Authorization Act of 2017. T e bill amended the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act of 1978. T e law imposes general requirements on youth-serving ama- teur athletic organizations and includes child abuse prevention training for adult members who have regular contact with athletes that are minors. T e bill extends to all sports that par- ticipate in interstate and/or international com- petition, not just equestrian sports. T e Center was authorized by Congress


through this law to develop policies and pro- cedures to prevent the emotional, physical and sexual abuse of amateur athletes. T e Center receives reports of misconduct, conducts in- vestigations, determines sanctions and informs National Governing Bodies for each sport, such as USEF, of sanctions against any persons for violations of the Center’s Safe Sport Code.


What is the Safe Sport Code? T e USEF put out a guide to the Safe Sport


Policy (aka Code) that specifi cally spells out what is required of its members in regards to SafeSport. In general, SafeSport covers six pri- mary types of misconduct: sexual misconduct, emotional misconduct, physical misconduct, bullying, harassment and hazing. T e guide- book describes and discusses each of these types of misconduct with defi nitions and ex- amples as well as what steps should be taken if someone suspects an individual of misconduct. Most importantly, members should note that


USEF is required to report any potentially criminal behavior to the appropriate law en- forcement agencies. In addition, all reports of sexual misconduct and violations of the Safe www.equiery.com | 800-244-9580


Sport Policy that are of a sexual nature must be reported directly to the U.S. Center for Safe Sport. Reporting may be done anonymously. Once reports are made, the Center begins to


investigate. T e Policy also discusses training, education and


background checks that are now required of USEF members. To download the full Safe


Sport Policy handbook, scan the QR code here.


Who Needs SafeSport Training? Initially, only offi cials, coaches and trainers


were required to go through the SafeSport training modules. However, because there are no horse shows in the U.S. in which children are not present, on August 28, 2018, the USEF Board of Directors moved to require not only USEF offi cials to take the SafeSport training, but all USEF Competing Members who are 18-years-old or older. Members must complete the on-line training sessions within 30 days of renewing their membership. In addition to competing members, all USEF licensed offi cials, Chefs d’Equipe, staff , board members, competition management, coaches, human physios, farriers, trainers, veterinarians and selectors hired or contracted by USEF must also complete the SafeSport training. Many offi cials already completed the training in 2018 and do not have to do it again. Individuals who do not comply become in- eligible to participate in USEF activities, in- cluding competitions, and will be placed on the SafeSport Ineligibility List until training requirements are fulfi lled. In addition, the USEF considers horse own- ers to be Competing Members, therefore owners must also comply with the SafeSport policy and undergo the training. If the horse is listed as owned by a farm, the policy does not apply. But, if the owner of the horse has an active USEF Competing Membership and is also 18-years-old or older, the owner must go through the training. If owners do not comply, their horses will not receive any USEF points and will not be able to compete in USEF-sanc- tioned competitions. Currently, minors and parents do not need to


go through the training process. However, Safe- Sport has developed a free SafeSport training module specifi cally for parents, and has created SafeSport Parent Toolkits for various minor age levels. T ere is a youth SafeSport training mod- ule in the works but has yet to be made public.


What Does This Mean for the 2019 Season?


Basically, any USEF member, licensed of- fi cial and/or person hired by the USEF in any


JANUARY 2019 | THE EQUIERY | 37


capacity, needs to take the SafeSport Training modules now. Although the website states the training will take no more than 90 minutes, the subject matter is heavy in nature and one might need to step away and do the training in smaller sessions. Once completed, the USEF receives notifi ca- tion within 24-48 hours and the member’s on- line membership dashboard will refl ect “SafeS- port Training Completed.” T e USEF will also notify any sub-organizations that the member belongs to.


Competition management should be check- ing that each member entered in their shows has completed the training while verifying USEF membership status. T ose who ride horses for others will need to make sure that their owners have gone through the testing as well. Since these SafeSport policies aff ect only


USEF-sanctioned competitions, T e Equiery wants to know if the policies have changed our readers’ competition plans for 2019. Send your comments to editor@equiery.com to let us know what you think.


Helpful Links


Below are a list of links related to the SafeSport movement.


SafeSport Homepage https://www.safesport.org/


USEF SafeSport Guidelines https://www.usef.org/compete/ resources-forms/rules-regula- tions/safe-sport


SafeSport Frequently Asked Questions


SafeSport Training Frequently Asked Questions


SafeSport Training https://safesport.org/training


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