USA Swimming Releases Banned Coaches List

I don't know about the label, but I do know that if you are a coach you must be held to a higher standard with regard to your conduct towards your athletes. You are in a position of authority and trust. Compromising that can be damaging to the athlete (if only for an older athlete's reputation), the team/teammates (team morale/favouritism/etc) and yourself (professionally). If you can't keep it zipped - regardless of gender - go into another line of work where you won't be tempted. -LBJ There are 100+ reasons that a masters swim coach should be aware of acting professionally and not blur the line between the coach on deck & one of the swimmers in the pool. Friendliness, personality and humor are all great - and a big part of making workouts fun and even bearable. But I like to be sure that there is support from the wives, girlfriends, husbands, and boyfriends for their swimmer to participate. Its hard enough for these athletes to be away from families. And that swimmers are treated equally and fairly. No need to create suspicion or concern due to actions from the coach. This is masters - adult swimming. Keeping it simple and respectful works. But I would not want to be coached by anyone who was banned by USA-Swimming for sexual abuse of a young swimmer - period.

But I would not want to be coached by anyone who was banned by USA-Swimming for sexual abuse of a young swimmer - period. I agree. You mentioned the "we're all adults, we can make our own choices" argument earlier in this thread. I would think 99% would choose not to be coached by these banned coaches.

Those of you who think pedophiles should be shunned or banned from society have a point, but are also a product of our times. The real solution is to make the kids feel as though they are being watched and protected at all times. Some of us have forgotten (or never learned) how to be parents, not your kids' buddies. Police tell us that since predators cannot be legally kept in jail forever, our job as parents is to keep track of the predators, not shun them (that just makes it easier for them to operate). Invite them over for tea (they are excellent at conversation, that is part of their charm to kids) and keep them talking until they yawn. If you are watching them, they cannot watch your kids. The moral? Do your jobs as parents and the kids will not be easy victims.

Is an 18 year old female coach having sex with a 17 year old a pedophile? I don't know about the label, but I do know that if you are a coach you must be held to a higher standard with regard to your conduct towards your athletes. You are in a position of authority and trust. Compromising that can be damaging to the athlete (if only for an older athlete's reputation), the team/teammates (team morale/favouritism/etc) and yourself (professionally). If you can't keep it zipped - regardless of gender - go into another line of work where you won't be tempted. If an employee of a business was having sexual relations with a 17 year old intern at the business, there would be heads rolling. (Unless it's the U.S. Congress, of course...) When I was 17, my girlfriend was 21. I don't think of her as a pedophile - I confess I still think of her rather fondly - but she also wasn't my track coach. -LBJ

Mr. Jansen, You may think of your 21 year old girlfriend as a saint, (my son would) however, the law doesn't. I also don't think that you feel your amour of so many years ago should have had forced surgery to remove her ovaries. ( I would rather not know if "she" had testicles.) I know hyperbole when I see it and "Jansen Island" was continuning the thought. I'm sure that we agree that child molesters need to be removed from contact with society. It is however, a grey area, that the judicial system should decide. If drunk drivers are included on the list with convicted sexual offenders, I wouldn't be surprised if a lawsuit was comming.

Those of you who think pedophiles should be shunned or banned from society have a point, but are also a product of our times. The real solution is to make the kids feel as though they are being watched and protected at all times. Some of us have forgotten (or never learned) how to be parents, not your kids' buddies. Police tell us that since predators cannot be legally kept in jail forever, our job as parents is to keep track of the predators, not shun them (that just makes it easier for them to operate). Invite them over for tea (they are excellent at conversation, that is part of their charm to kids) and keep them talking until they yawn. If you are watching them, they cannot watch your kids. The moral? Do your jobs as parents and the kids will not be easy victims. Amen!!!

Just a word of caution. My brother-in-law is a skating coach. He coached a young skater who went on to the Olympics. We were talking about the swimming coaches situation, and he commented that as a coach he has to be extremely careful with his relationship with skaters and their parents. Not because of any sexual issues, but because of the THREAT of them using supposed sexual issues to get back at him if they don't like something he has said or done that is not related to sexual issues. He's seen it happen to innocent coaches before. It's called blackmail. I'd hate to see this turn into a witch hunt, and I would hope that those who are complaining about a coach are willing to take it to court so that both sides get their say, unless, of course, the coach admits fault. In our country you are innocent until proven guilty. This exact scenario just happened in Northern Virginia. Below is a link to the article that came out today. The gist is a 12 year old girl accused the teacher of molesting her but the teacher was found not guilty after about 10 minutes of deliberation. Come to find out the girl was mad at the teacher. Meanwhile he gets his name and picture in the paper for several months as an accused child molester and was suspended without pay for the past 4 months. www.washingtonpost.com/.../AR2010052703259.html

People need to know that if they abuse children there is no safe place any where ever again!!!!! I am pretty certain that if you are found guilty of sexually-abusing children you are not walking the streets. And I REALLY doubt that you would be allowed to be at a public pool because sex offenders are not allowed to be in places where children congregate.

Castration is not enough punishment for these types...An island somewhere where they have no possiblity of swimming back to the mainland would be a start...Our kids and our friends deserve better!!! NO!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is NOT acceptable. First we torture them and then we drop them off on the island UNCASTRATED and let them be sexual predators upon each other. I coached a girl's high school track team when I was 19 and knew better than to even allow the slightest hint of something improper. These people, all adults I assume, have no excuse and no forgiveness. One strike and you're out when it comes to kids. Any species that can't/won't figure out how to protect its most vulnerable members is worthy of extinction. -LBJ

My problem is that you have lumped all of the coaches into one box. Castrate them all, whip the sons and daughters, lop off the head's of the parents, and salt the ground upon where they lived. It is easy to have a position about an adult forcing sex on a seven year old child. There probably isn't much disagreement between us. Is an 18 year old female coach having sex with a 17 year old a pedophile? Should she have her ovaries taken out? Should she be tortured then banished for life and placed on Jansen island? I wish it was black or white. It's not.