Virginia Club Coach Added To SafeSport Disciplinary Database As Ineligible

Virginia club coach Matthew Cunningham is the latest name added to the U.S. Center for SafeSport database. Cunningham is listed as “ineligible,” which typically means a permanent ban where the window for an appeal has not yet closed.

The database entry also carries the “subject to appeal / not yet final” tag. Representatives for the Center for SafeSport have explained that this tag typically means that the investigation into an individual has already been completed, and a decision to ban already handed down. The tag merely means that the banned person still has a window to file an appeal to bring the ban to arbitration. Cunningham’s ban was handed down on July 28.

You can read more about the SafeSport investigative process here. The SafeSport database compiles disciplinary measures taken against individuals in all U.S. Olympic sports, and a ban in the database applies to membership in any Olympic sport in the United States.

Cunningham’s misconduct is listed as “criminal disposition – involving a minor.” Under the SafeSport Code, being charged with a crime can be, by itself, a violation of the Code.

Cunningham was previously a coach with Stingrays Swimming out of Virginia. His LinkedIn lists him as a coach there since 2013. The club says Cunningham was fired on January 15, 2020, as soon as an incident was brought to the club’s attention.