The U.S. Center for SafeSport's Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies, known as MAAPP, set rules for how adults interact with minor athletes in Olympic and Paralympic sports. The 2025 version took effect January 1, 2025. This explainer covers what the policies require, who must follow them, and how they relate to a civil case.
Who must follow the policies
The MAAPP applies to the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, national governing bodies, and local affiliated organizations under the Center's authority. The Center cites federal law, 36 U.S.C. 220542, which requires these organizations to adopt policies limiting one-on-one contact with minors and to follow other safety rules.
The 2025 version was published January 5, 2024. Governing bodies had to submit their policies by April 1, 2024, and the rules took effect January 1, 2025. The policies define a minor athlete as someone under 18 who took part in the sport within the previous 12 months.
What the policies require
The MAAPP covers several areas where abuse risks are well known:
- Training: adults covered by the rules must complete SafeSport's core course before regular contact with minors or within 45 days, take a refresher every 12 months, and retake the full course every four years
- One-on-one interactions: these must be observable and interruptible by another adult
- Individual training sessions: these must be observable and interruptible, need written parental consent each year, and parents may watch
- Locker rooms: no recording devices, and adults may not undress or shower with minors, with limited exceptions
- Electronic messages: communications with a minor must be open and transparent, meaning a parent, guardian or another adult is copied
- Travel: rides and travel with a minor must be observable and interruptible unless a parent gives written consent each year or other people are present
The Center states plainly that the policies cannot guarantee a minor's safety. They are meant to reduce the chances for grooming and abuse by limiting private, unobserved contact.
What the policies do not cover
The MAAPP reaches organizations under the Center's authority. Many youth sports settings fall outside that system, including many local leagues, school teams and private clubs that are not affiliated with a national governing body. Those settings may have their own rules, and state laws still apply.
The policies also do not create a lawsuit on their own. A SafeSport case is an administrative process. It can lead to discipline, including a ban from sport, but it does not award compensation to a survivor.
How the rules can matter in a civil case
In a civil lawsuit, a court may look at whether an organization had reasonable safety rules and followed them. Where the MAAPP applies, questions can include:
- Whether the coach completed required training
- Whether one-on-one sessions or travel were allowed without consent or another adult
- Whether private messages between a coach and a minor went unchecked
- Whether concerns were reported as federal law requires
A policy violation does not automatically make an organization legally responsible. Whether it may share responsibility depends on the facts and on state law. Our page on coaching sexual abuse explains more, and our sexual assault and abuse page covers the broader topic.
If you or your child experienced abuse in sport, you can report to SafeSport, speak with a lawyer, or both. Deadlines for civil claims vary by state. A lawyer can review the specifics and explain how these rules may apply.
This article is general information about how these cases work. It is not legal advice, it does not create an attorney-client relationship, and no two claims are alike. If something here sounds like your situation, the useful next step is a conversation about the facts.
