Independent third party audit of athlete health and safety at US Biathlon

Please check back here for updates on the review.


Recently, the Associated Press published an article about a SafeSport investigation involving a U.S. Biathlon athlete and a former contractor who was a member of our technical support program. While U.S. Biathlon was not the subject of the investigation, we recognize that the wellbeing of athletes was adversely impacted. For that we sincerely apologize, and we are committed to strengthening our culture, oversight, and safeguards against future occurrences.

The U.S. Biathlon Board of Directors has named a task force to select an independent third party consultant who will audit athlete health and safety at U.S. Biathlon.

Task Force Members
  • Rachel Steer – Athlete representative to the Board and Vice Chair of the Board, National Team athlete 1999-2006, Olympic Team 2002 and 2006.
  • Sarah Konrad – Board director (former athlete board representative); former Chair of USOPC Athlete Advisory Council 2013-2016, first American woman to compete in two sports during one Olympiad: biathlon and nordic skiing at the Torino Winter Olympic Games in 2006.
  • Kathy Kendricks – Independent Board Director, retired General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of DreamWorks, Member of Women’s Leadership Board of Harvard Kennedy School
  • Kelsey Dickinson - Athlete representative to the Board, current World Cup athlete, Executive Director of the Women Ski Coaches Association
  • Brian Olsen – Former athlete representative to the Board and USOPC Athlete Advisory Council; Olympic Team 2006

The independent contractor will thoroughly evaluate our current athlete wellness practices and team culture, identify gaps, and provide recommendations on sustainable improvements and the implementation of latest best practices in line with the work of the US Center for SafeSport, Biathlon Integrity Unit, and the USOPC. The task force will work with the auditor to present the findings of the audit to the Board and membership. We will announce the selected auditor on this page and aim to initiate the audit before the end of the season.

In the meantime, US Biathlon will continue to diligently implement the U.S Center for SafeSport Code and its respective policies, along with its own Safe Sport, Background Screening and Minor Abuse Prevention Policies. We encourage any athletes who wish to learn more or report abuse to visit usbiathlon.org/safesport for information regarding its SafeSport, Background Screening and Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies, reporting tools, the SafeSport helpline, parental consent forms, and more. U.S. Biathlon has zero tolerance for retaliation. To find out more, visit US Biathlon | Policies & Forms.

Documentation