Bipartisan legislation cosponsored by U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) to protect amateur athletes from abuse, including sexual abuse, by coaches and employees in U.S. Olympic and Paralympic sports, recently became law.
The Empowering Olympic, Paralympic, and Amateur Athletes Act of 2020, S. 2330, introduced in July 2019 by bill sponsor U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) and cosponsors including Sen. Ernst and U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), was signed into law on Oct. 30 by President Donald Trump.
“I’m grateful for my colleagues and the president in getting this important bill signed into law,” Sen. Ernst said on Monday.
The new law increases athlete representation on governing boards, committees and panels within National Governing Bodies (NBGs) and the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) to more quickly help identify problematic policies and practices, according to a bill summary provided by Sen. Ernst’s office.
Additionally, the law will increase resources for the U.S. Center for SafeSport and ensure its independence from the USOPC and the NGBs; require SafeSport training for athletes and adults; require NGBs to enforce SafeSport sanctions; and direct SafeSport to maintain a public list of all barred coaches and individuals, the summary says.
Among numerous other provisions, the law will strengthen and codify reporting mandates for adults with knowledge of any allegation of child abuse of an amateur athlete, and protect individuals who report emotional, physical or sexual abuse of an athlete from retaliation within the Olympic movement.
“For decades, Larry Nassar perpetrated acts of sexual abuse against hundreds of young female athletes, and the U.S. Olympic system failed to take action” said Sen. Ernst, referring to the convicted serial sex offender, former USA Gymnastics national team doctor, and former osteopathic physician.
“To help ensure this horrific abuse never happens again,” she said, “I worked to pass bipartisan legislation that will help empower our athletes, improve the process for reporting abuse, and restore trust and integrity in the U.S. Olympic system.”