Latest news with #ParalympicCommittee
Fox Sports
a day ago
- Sport
- Fox Sports
SafeSport annual report outlines progress in wide-ranging changes that went into play last year
Associated Press DENVER (AP) — The U.S. Center for SafeSport's annual report updates progress on changes it has made in several areas, including its handling of complaints involving minors and the way it categorizes a wide-ranging set of outcomes called 'administrative closures' that sometimes create more questions than answers. The report, released Monday, comes as the center searches for a new leader in the wake of the firing of CEO Ju'Riese Colon, whose tenure was marred by the hiring and dismissal of an investigator who was later arrested for sex crimes allegedly committed before he worked at SafeSport. Part of the reset for the center also includes an increased push for community engagement. The center held seven outreach meetings in June involving sports leaders, athletes and abuse survivors. 'Robust engagement with stakeholders and a deep commitment to continuous evolution are fundamental to the Center's work to advance athlete safety,' said April Holmes, the center's interim CEO. 'Shifting sport culture is about more than catalyzing change, it's about building a community that makes change inevitable.' The center brought in around $25 million last year, most of which is funded by American sports organizations that fall under the umbrella of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee. It opened in 2017 to become the clearinghouse for abuse cases involving Olympic sports in the United States. It has been beset with complaints about reports that can take years to conclude and an opaque resolution process that could leave both accusers and accused frustrated. In April 2024, the center responded to those complaints by instituting changes in the way it dealt with cases. 'The process improvements and Code revisions strengthen the Center's ability to more efficiently adjudicate cases fairly, consistently, and with trauma sensitivity,' the report read. SafeSport's handling of reports involving minors, some of whom saw their high school careers plunge into uncertainty while under temporary measures for allegations that might never be proven, now includes an 'alternative track.' Part of that introduces an interactive course that can be offered instead of sanctions for what the center deems to be 'low-level' violations. The center is also offering more information about administrative closures — cases that critics complained ended up in a 'black box' from which no details could be found and, thus, could prevent sports organizations from taking steps of their own to curtail abusers. Now, those cases have been divided into two categories — 'closures' and 'holds' — and those have subsections that explain the reason for the action. There are, for instance, holds for cases where a claimant didn't participate in the case, and closures where respondents are issued a 'letter of admonishment' or where no policy existed at the time of the alleged offense to pursue the case. The report also offered an update on numbers that reflect the fast-growing nature of the 8-year-old organization. It received an average of 155 reports a week in 2024, which marked a 2780% increase over 2017, when it opened. As of the end of last year, it had placed 2,224 people in its Centralized Disciplinary Database. The center had delivered nearly 7.5 million online training courses by the end of last year. Also in 2024, it debuted a mobile app that provided access to training and reporting guidance, as well as the disciplinary database. ___ AP Summer Olympics: in this topic
Winnipeg Free Press
a day ago
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
SafeSport annual report outlines progress in wide-ranging changes that went into play last year
DENVER (AP) — The U.S. Center for SafeSport's annual report updates progress on changes it has made in several areas, including its handling of complaints involving minors and the way it categorizes a wide-ranging set of outcomes called 'administrative closures' that sometimes create more questions than answers. The report, released Monday, comes as the center searches for a new leader in the wake of the firing of CEO Ju'Riese Colon, whose tenure was marred by the hiring and dismissal of an investigator who was later arrested for sex crimes allegedly committed before he worked at SafeSport. Part of the reset for the center also includes an increased push for community engagement. The center held seven outreach meetings in June involving sports leaders, athletes and abuse survivors. 'Robust engagement with stakeholders and a deep commitment to continuous evolution are fundamental to the Center's work to advance athlete safety,' said April Holmes, the center's interim CEO. 'Shifting sport culture is about more than catalyzing change, it's about building a community that makes change inevitable.' The center brought in around $25 million last year, most of which is funded by American sports organizations that fall under the umbrella of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee. It opened in 2017 to become the clearinghouse for abuse cases involving Olympic sports in the United States. It has been beset with complaints about reports that can take years to conclude and an opaque resolution process that could leave both accusers and accused frustrated. In April 2024, the center responded to those complaints by instituting changes in the way it dealt with cases. 'The process improvements and Code revisions strengthen the Center's ability to more efficiently adjudicate cases fairly, consistently, and with trauma sensitivity,' the report read. SafeSport's handling of reports involving minors, some of whom saw their high school careers plunge into uncertainty while under temporary measures for allegations that might never be proven, now includes an 'alternative track.' Part of that introduces an interactive course that can be offered instead of sanctions for what the center deems to be 'low-level' violations. The center is also offering more information about administrative closures — cases that critics complained ended up in a 'black box' from which no details could be found and, thus, could prevent sports organizations from taking steps of their own to curtail abusers. Now, those cases have been divided into two categories — 'closures' and 'holds' — and those have subsections that explain the reason for the action. There are, for instance, holds for cases where a claimant didn't participate in the case, and closures where respondents are issued a 'letter of admonishment' or where no policy existed at the time of the alleged offense to pursue the case. The report also offered an update on numbers that reflect the fast-growing nature of the 8-year-old organization. It received an average of 155 reports a week in 2024, which marked a 2780% increase over 2017, when it opened. As of the end of last year, it had placed 2,224 people in its Centralized Disciplinary Database. The center had delivered nearly 7.5 million online training courses by the end of last year. Also in 2024, it debuted a mobile app that provided access to training and reporting guidance, as well as the disciplinary database. ___ AP Summer Olympics:
Hindustan Times
a day ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
SafeSport annual report outlines progress in wide-ranging changes that went into play last year
DENVER (AP) — The U.S. Center for SafeSport's annual report updates progress on changes it has made in several areas, including its handling of complaints involving minors and the way it categorizes a wide-ranging set of outcomes called 'administrative closures' that sometimes create more questions than answers. HT Image The report, released Monday, comes as the center searches for a new leader in the wake of the firing of CEO Ju'Riese Colon, whose tenure was marred by the hiring and dismissal of an investigator who was later arrested for sex crimes allegedly committed before he worked at SafeSport. Part of the reset for the center also includes an increased push for community engagement. The center held seven outreach meetings in June involving sports leaders, athletes and abuse survivors. 'Robust engagement with stakeholders and a deep commitment to continuous evolution are fundamental to the Center's work to advance athlete safety,' said April Holmes, the center's interim CEO. 'Shifting sport culture is about more than catalyzing change, it's about building a community that makes change inevitable.' The center brought in around $25 million last year, most of which is funded by American sports organizations that fall under the umbrella of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee. It opened in 2017 to become the clearinghouse for abuse cases involving Olympic sports in the United States. It has been beset with complaints about reports that can take years to conclude and an opaque resolution process that could leave both accusers and accused frustrated. In April 2024, the center responded to those complaints by instituting changes in the way it dealt with cases. 'The process improvements and Code revisions strengthen the Center's ability to more efficiently adjudicate cases fairly, consistently, and with trauma sensitivity,' the report read. SafeSport's handling of reports involving minors, some of whom saw their high school careers plunge into uncertainty while under temporary measures for allegations that might never be proven, now includes an 'alternative track.' Part of that introduces an interactive course that can be offered instead of sanctions for what the center deems to be 'low-level' violations. The center is also offering more information about administrative closures — cases that critics complained ended up in a 'black box' from which no details could be found and, thus, could prevent sports organizations from taking steps of their own to curtail abusers. Now, those cases have been divided into two categories — 'closures' and 'holds' — and those have subsections that explain the reason for the action. There are, for instance, holds for cases where a claimant didn't participate in the case, and closures where respondents are issued a 'letter of admonishment' or where no policy existed at the time of the alleged offense to pursue the case. The report also offered an update on numbers that reflect the fast-growing nature of the 8-year-old organization. It received an average of 155 reports a week in 2024, which marked a 2780% increase over 2017, when it opened. As of the end of last year, it had placed 2,224 people in its Centralized Disciplinary Database. The center had delivered nearly 7.5 million online training courses by the end of last year. Also in 2024, it debuted a mobile app that provided access to training and reporting guidance, as well as the disciplinary database. ___ AP Summer Olympics:
5 days ago
- Sport
Buonfiglio the new Italian Olympic Committee boss ahead of Milan-Cortina Games
ROME -- Luciano Buonfiglio, a canoe athlete at the 1976 Montreal Games, was elected president of the Italian Olympic committee (CONI) on Thursday to keep the body moving in the same direction ahead of next winter's Milan-Cortina Games. The 74-year-old Buonfiglio, who has been president of the Italian Canoe and Kayak Federation since 2005, was the candidate supported by outgoing CONI president Giovanni Malagò. Malagò, who is leaving the presidency after 12 years and three terms, remains president of the Milan-Cortina organizing committee. Buonfiglio was elected in the first round after receiving 47 of the 81 votes. Luca Pancalli, who led Italy's Paralympic Committee for a quarter century, received the remaining 34 votes. Franco Carraro, the 85-year-old former International Olympic Committee member who ran as a peacemaker, didn't get any votes. During his pre-vote speech, Carraro said he was 'very concerned' that Buonfiglio and Pancalli led groups of voters who were strongly opposed to each other but told his supporters that they were free to vote for either of those two candidates. Buonfiglio was also a CONI vice president from 2013-18.
Winnipeg Free Press
5 days ago
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
Buonfiglio the new Italian Olympic Committee boss ahead of Milan-Cortina Games
ROME (AP) — Luciano Buonfiglio, a canoe athlete at the 1976 Montreal Games, was elected president of the Italian Olympic committee (CONI) on Thursday to keep the body moving in the same direction ahead of next winter's Milan-Cortina Games. The 74-year-old Buonfiglio, who has been president of the Italian Canoe and Kayak Federation since 2005, was the candidate supported by outgoing CONI president Giovanni Malagò. Malagò, who is leaving the presidency after 12 years and three terms, remains president of the Milan-Cortina organizing committee. Buonfiglio was elected in the first round after receiving 47 of the 81 votes. Luca Pancalli, who led Italy's Paralympic Committee for a quarter century, received the remaining 34 votes. Franco Carraro, the 85-year-old former International Olympic Committee member who ran as a peacemaker, didn't get any votes. During his pre-vote speech, Carraro said he was 'very concerned' that Buonfiglio and Pancalli led groups of voters who were strongly opposed to each other but told his supporters that they were free to vote for either of those two candidates. Buonfiglio was also a CONI vice president from 2013-18. ___ AP Olympics:
