Of the 60 million youth athletes throughout the United States, an estimated 4.8 million may be victims of sexual abuse. This is why the main priority for the Athlete Protection & Safety program at USA Lacrosse is implementing policies and procedures that promote safe environments for all participating athletes.  Having best practices in place ensures USA Lacrosse is doing everything possible to help prevent youth athletes from experiencing any type of misconduct or abuse. 

Editor’s note: As the fall season approaches and many kids either return to, or perhaps begin for the first time, fall ball lacrosse activities, we thought it may be helpful to once again share this article from 2021 about the varied pace and process of physical literacy development among kids. Physical literacy is one of the six core values in USA Lacrosse’s Athlete Development framework.

The following article is part of a content partnership with TrueSport, a positive youth sports movement powered by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). TrueSport has partnered with more than 20 sport NGBs to promote a positive culture of youth sport with expert content and programming. 

The following article is part of a content partnership with TrueSport, a positive youth sports movement powered by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). TrueSport has partnered with more than 20 sport NGBs to promote a positive culture of youth sport with expert content and programming.

As a former collegiate player and now a longtime men’s lacrosse referee, Jim Loffredo, 50, knows what it feels like to be ‘in the zone.’ 

It’s a unique and often rare feeling of being singularly focused on just one task. All distractions and background noise seem to disappear as you develop laser sharp connection to just one function.

The following article is part of a content partnership with TrueSport, a positive youth sports movement powered by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). TrueSport has partnered with more than 20 sport NGBs to promote a positive culture of youth sport with expert content and programming.

Athlete Protection and Safety has always been the highest priority at USA Lacrosse and some recent updates in processes have been made to keep that priority at the forefront of the organization’s mission. USA Lacrosse believes that these updates, outlined below, will enrich the experience for all lacrosse participants.

USA Lacrosse and its partner in youth safety, the National Center for Safety Initiatives (NCSI), are jointly celebrating the notable achievement of once again having 30,000 adult coach and volunteer background screenings completed.

USA Lacrosse mandates the national background screening as part of its join and renew process for all adult coach memberships. 

The following article is part of a content partnership with TrueSport, a positive youth sports movement powered by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). TrueSport has partnered with more than 20 sport NGBs to promote a positive culture of youth sport with expert content and programming.  

The following article is part of a content partnership with TrueSport, a positive youth sports movement powered by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). TrueSport has partnered with more than 20 sport NGBs to promote a positive culture of youth sport with expert content and programming. 

Alkaline water, mineral water, carbonated water, coconut water. There are so many different water options available that it can feel a bit overwhelming at the grocery store. Which one will serve your athlete best, or is plain old tap water the optimal solution?