| Virginia's Blue Ridge YMCA Swimming is committed to protecting your swimmers by following the Safe Sport Policies defined by USA Swimming. In addition, VABR has added some of its own policies to further create a safe environment specific to our club. If there is ever a time where a VABR policy and USA swimming policy overlap, USA swimming policy will prevail. All VABR athletes and parents need to read and understand all information on this page and are expected to follow all policies throughout the year. USA Swimming is committed to fostering a fun, healthy and safe environment for all of its members. For that reason, USA Swimming has in place a detailed Code of Conduct. The following rules, policies, reporting structure, education and tools are intended to serve our members as we work together to maintain this environment.
Free Online Parent Safe Sport Course Parents are a critical component to our overall goal to protecting children from sexual abuse. The comprehensive online programming includes information about how offenders operate; how to recognize and respond to boundary violations, myths and facts about child sexual abuse and USA Swimming’s Athlete Protection Policies and Procedures. Our training will help you: - Understand the scope and effects of abuse in sport - Recognize the signs of grooming behavior and boundary violations - Understand how to establish boundaries and protect against false allegations - Know how to react and report suspected abuse All parents are encouraged to take the Parent Training through USA Swimming. Free Online Minor Athlete Safe Sport Course (Age 12-17) This course is designed for athletes 12-17 years old and will cover:
- The basics of Safe Sport,
- Understanding the three types of boundaries, and
- What to do if you or someone you know is being harmed.
All swimmers age 12-17 are encouraged to take the Minor Athlete Training through USA Swimming Free Athlete Protection Training (Athletes 18+ years old and adult members of USA Swimming) All swimmers age 18+ and all adult members of USA Swimming MUST take the Athlete Protection Training course through USA Swimming Recognizing and Reporting Mandatory reporting laws: "Pursuant to federal law, all adults authorized to interact with minor or amateur athletes who learn of facts that give reason to suspect that a child has suffered an incident of child abuse, including sexual abuse, shall make a report of the suspected abuse to law enforcement and/or your state's designated agency within 24 hours." USA Swimming and U.S. Center for Safe Sport Contact and reporting information Contact the U.S. Center for Safe Sport to make a report. Call 833-5US-SAFE (587-7233) or use the online reporting form or find more information at http://www.uscenterforsafesport.org/ Text anonymous tips to 888-270-SWIM (7946) Click HERE to Deal with a Safe Sport Concern, contact USA Swimming at (719) 866-4578. Online Reporting: USA Swimming reporting |
