SafeSport Information

There are a lot of great reasons to swim – at any level. As a life‐long activity, people often swim to have fun and spend time with friends. Swimming also encourages a healthy lifestyle and builds self‐confidence. Swimmers even benefit from the sport out of the water. They learn goal‐setting, teamwork and time management skills. Unfortunately, sports, including swimming, can also be a high‐risk environment for misconduct, including physical and sexual abuse. All forms of misconduct are intolerable and in direct conflict with the values of USA Swimming. Misconduct may damage an athlete’s psychological well‐being. Athletes who have been mistreated experience social embarrassment, emotional turmoil, psychological scars, loss of self‐esteem and negative impacts on their relationships with family, friends and the sport. Misconduct often hurts an athlete’s competitive performance and may cause him or her to drop out of our sport entirely.

USA Swimming is committed to fostering a fun, healthy and safe sport environment for all its members. We all must recognize that the safety of swimmers lies with all those involved in the sport and is not the sole responsibility of any one person at the club, LSC, or national level. USA Swimming and Kentucky Aquatics are committed to safeguarding all our members with the welfare of its athlete members as top priority.

Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies


The U.S. Center for SafeSport is a separate, independent organization that oversees all sexual misconduct in Olympic sports. They created the Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies (MAAPP) to set a baseline for acceptable safety standards governing interactions between adults and minor athletes.  Kentucky Aquatics has adopted MAAPP; as part of your registration, we ask that you read the policies (MAAPP) thoroughly and sign an acknowledgment that you have done so. Your athletes' registration is not complete until the acknowlegement has been executed and returned to a coach.  USA Swimming has number of resources to educate clubs, coaches, athletes, and parents understant MAAPP. We urge you to take some time to review USA Swimming's update FAQs and view their mini-webinars. Kentucky Aquatics policies, including MAAPP, are available for review/download at the end of this page. 

 

Training Requirements

Adult Athlete APT Membership Requirement


Starting June 23, 2019, all adult athlete members of USA Swimming (athletes ages 18 and over) will be required to complete the Athlete Protection Training (APT) as a condition of membership. Adult athletes will be given 30 days to complete the training. Starting July 23, 2019, any adult athlete who has not completed APT will not be a USA Swimming athlete member in good standing. Similarly, athletes who turn 18 years old after June 23 will be given 30 days after their 18th birthday to complete the training.

SafeSport Certification


In order to become a SafeSport certified team, Kentucky Aquatics asks that parents and athletes over 12 take a few minutes to watch the SafeSport videos: SafeSport for Parents and SafeSport for Minor Athletes. Simply log on to the USA Swimming website (Directions) and complete the course. The training is free and is required as part of your athletes' registration.

 

Report a SafeSport Issue and Grievance Procedure

If you feel that you have experienced or are a witness to a SafeSport violation, please contact:

Kentucky Aquatics' SafeSport Coordinator Cristina Pietrowski at [email protected] or 404-202-5554; and/or contact

USA Swimming at (719) 866-4578 (see Deal with a Safe Sport Concern) for more information and/or contact

the U.S. Center for SafeSport via phone (833-5US-SAFE (587-7233)) or via online reporting form or find more information at http://www.uscenterforsafesport.org/.  

The safety of our athletes is paramount to Kentucky Aquatics and USA Swimming. If you experience or witness actions or events that concern you or make you feel uncomfortable, it is important to let someone know. Please review the Kentucky Aquatics Grievance Policy, which outlines the recommended process when a swimmer, parent, or coach can bring forward a complaint or concern. 

If you have any questions regarding Kentucky Aquatics' SafeSport policies, please contact the the team's SafeSport Coordinator Cristina Pietrowski at [email protected] or 404-202-5554.

   
Additional Information:

Kentucky Aquatics Policies:

SafeSport Training Links:

Waiver/Permission Slips

KYA Codes of Conduct