The USOC Friday announced Safe Sport, a program designed to provide guidelines for the welfare and training of young athletes. The program, which includes an 80-page guidebook to address physical and sexual misconduct in sport, was developed by a task force created in the wake of allegations that USA Swimming coaches molested young swimmers. USOC CEO Scott Blackmun said, "We clearly have an issue in the United States and around the world, and giving the NGBs some tools to address a problem that needs to be addressed is the kind of role the USOC needs to be playing." USA Swimming developed a similar Safe Sport program in '10.
The announcement of Safe Sport highlighted the USOC's BOD meeting Friday in Silver Spring, Md. The meeting included updates on marketing, sponsorship renewals, fundraising and International relations. NBC Olympics President Gary Zenkel met with the BOD, as well. Blackmun said that the USOC and IOC continue to make headway on their revenue-sharing negotiations but still have work ahead of them as they try to reach a new deal. Blackmun: "We're no closer today than we were two months ago, but we're moving in the right direction."
