Nearly six years before USA Swimming was rocked by a series of sexual abuse accusations against coaches, the national governing body sent two letters to the U.S. Olympic Committee asking it to take the lead in developing policies to protect young athletes across the Olympic movement.
The letters, which were sent in late 2004 and early 2005 and obtained by USA TODAY Sports, echoed a plea made five years earlier by USA Gymnastics. In both cases, the USOC was alerted to a potential crisis by two of the country's largest and most decorated governing bodies.
USA Swimming executive director Chuck Wielgus wrote to the USOC that it should follow the lead of other national youth organizations, which crafted plans and programs that were then implemented at the local level.