The U.S. Center for SafeSport, which investigates allegations of emotional, physical and sexual abuse in Olympic and Paralympic sports, saw a 20% increase in reports of alleged abuse and misconduct in 2025 and a 9% improvement in how long it took to fully adjudicate cases.
Benita Fitzgerald Mosley, the 1984 Olympic 100m hurdles gold medalist, took over as SafeSport CEO in February.
“In 1984, I felt the weight of gold around my neck and the pride of representing Team USA,” she wrote in an op-ed in the Denver Post. “Every athlete who takes to the field, track, pool, or court deserves to chase that feeling–safely and free from the fear of harm. That’s the hard work we’ve begun. And future generations of athletes deserve to see it finished. We have an opportunity to ‘play a part in history’ by leading the movement to make sport safer for all.”
Fitzgerald Mosley wrote, “There was no roadmap when SafeSport opened in Denver in 2017, and within the first year, it received 281 reports of alleged abuse and misconduct. Fast forward to 2025, SafeSport received nearly 9,700 reports, a 20% increase over the previous year.”
SafeSport published its annual report this week, highlighting that more than 2,500 individuals are listed as banned or restricted in its centralized disciplinary database.
The Center also developed a 2026-28 strategic plan to take it through the LA28 Games, the first Summer Olympics and Paralympics held in the U.S. since Atlanta in 1996.
The plan includes three priorities:
- Elevating our programs and services to enhance understanding and the experience with SafeSport;
- Coordinating with our athlete and stakeholder communities to optimize safeguarding in sport; and
- Building a people-first culture and sustainable operating model that strengthens our capacity to deliver on our mission.
“Championing safe and healthy sport environments is our shared responsibility,” Fitzgerald Mosley wrote. “Whether parents, coaches, sport administrators, spectators, or athletes ourselves, we can take action by: getting trained on abuse prevention, adopting policies that protect minors, challenging harmful behavior, and reporting abuse.”
