USA Swimming Releases Names of 46 Banned from Organization

USA Swimming responded to a sexual abuse scandal Tuesday by releasing a list of 46 people who have received lifetime bans or permanently quit the organization, including former national team director Everett Uchiyama.

The list was made public by the Colorado-based governing body about 3 weeks after its board approved four proposals to deal with claims that numerous coaches had inappropriate contact with youth swimmers.

According to USA Swimming, Uchiyama received his suspension on Jan. 31, 2006. The oldest suspension on the list was handed out in 1991, but most occurred in the past decade -- including 11 since the beginning of 2009.

At its regularly scheduled May board meeting, USA Swimming approved measures to deal with the burgeoning wave of lawsuits and media reports, which included publishing the list of banned coaches. Members also voted to authorize the start-up of a hotline and counseling service, create an athlete protection committee with experts from both inside and outside the sport, and set up staff positions to focus on athlete protection.

Uchiyama hastily resigned as national team director on Jan. 27, 2006 without explanation. He began his career at USA Swimming in 1999 as the national team coordinator, and moved up to national team director on an interim basis in December 2002. The interim title was removed in April 2004, just a few months before the Athens Olympics.

USA Swimming has come under increasing scrutiny for its handling of alleged sexual abuse cases, with some critics claiming that it covered up wrongdoing and fostered an environment that allowed harmful conduct to occur.

In March, 1972 Olympic champion Deena Deardurff Schmidt revealed that as she trained in the 1960s, she was repeatedly molested by her coach. Despite telling officials at USA Swimming years later, she said, the coach -- whom she wouldn't name -- went on to train more young swimmers and was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame.

Her comments came a day after a separate lawsuit was filed in Santa Clara County, Calif., alleging that more than 30 coaches nationwide have engaged in sexual misconduct with young females.