Safe Sport – Questions and answers

I have Safe Sport certification that I tested for and acquired in the USA, but I am a coach/instructor/race official in Canada. Will my US Safe Sport certification allow me to recertify my Sail Canada certifications?

Even if coach/instructor/race official in Canada have a Safe Sport certification from the U.S.A., all Sail Canada Officials, Instructors, Coaches are required to complete approved Canadian Safe Sport Training. Sail Canada recommends the Coaching Association of Canada Safe Sport Training, which is free at https://safesport.coach.ca/.

If I already have a Safe Sport Certification from another country, do I need to consent to OSIC?

Regardless of any certification you may have from any country, all Sail Canada Universal Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport (UCCMS) participants, including National committee and subcommittee volunteers, National staff, Certified officials, Certified and registered coaches and Certified and registered instructors, need to consent to Sail Canada’s new Code of Conduct, the UCCMS, as well as being subject to the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner (OSIC) if a complaint is lodged.

Sail Canada Code of Conduct and the Universal Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport (UCCMS) apply to Sail Canada Championships, but not the other regattas in Canada, whether they are regional or club.

For example, CORK Opti and ILCA Canadian Championships, but are not subject to the Agreement with the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner (OSIC) and the UCCMS, but whatever Code of Conduct or Safe Sport Policy, the Class Association or the Organizing Authority has in place at the time of the regatta.

Participants should be aware that they may be subject to one or more Code of Conducts during an event (ex. Class Associations, Provincial Sailing Association, Sailing clubs and Organizing Authority’s Code and Conducts, etc…).

To avoid having a situation with no witness or to put anyone in a situation where there is risk of a false accusation, the goal of the Rule of Two is to ensure all interactions and communications are in open, observable and justifiable settings for Persons in Authority when interacting with athletes, whether in person or remotely.

Ideally for male athletes there is at least one male (Person in Authority) and for female athletes at least one female (Person in Authority).

All one-on-one interactions between a Person in Authority and an Athlete must take place within earshot and in view of a second Person in Authority, except for medical emergencies. This includes times such as drop off and pick up, traveling to events and any interactions outside of the structured programs.

For more information about the Rule of Two, please check out the Coaching Association of Canada website.

Maltreatment is a deliberate act, which results in harm or the potential for physical or psychological harm, whether it is intended or not. Maltreatment could be:

-psychological (verbal, deny attention or support, etc…);
-rooming (process of building trust and comfort…);
-physical (contact or non-contact…);
-neglect (lack of reasonable care such as denying adequate hydration…);
-related to reporting (failure to report…);
-sexual (online, verbal, social media, hazing, etc..);
-or related to process (falsifying information…).

Every sailing organization across the country should have “Safe Sport” as a priority, meaning that all member organizations are working with their Provincial Sailing Association towards adopting the Safe Sport policy package provided. The package of policies includes Code of Conduct, Social Media Policy, Screening Policy, Discipline & Complaints Policy, Dispute Resolution policy and other.

The organization you are a member of will likely be looking for you to agree to abide by all their policies including the safe sport package once they have been put into place.

Sail Canada identified individuals in the following roles as “UCCMS participants” who are required to consent to Sail Canada new Code of Conduct and to the Universal Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport (UCCMS):

-National staff and contractors
-National committee volunteer members
-National subcommittee volunteer members
-Certified officials
-Certified and registered coaches
-Certified and registered instructors

They can do so by login to their Sail Canada profile at https://members.sailing.ca/index.php?action=_login.show_member_login.

More details are available in the notice sent on March 28.