Good Sportsmanship League Requirements

The City of Olean recognizes that youth and adult sports can be exciting and rewarding to participate in, whether as a player, spectator, parent, coach or referring official. In an effort to promote the experience, all leagues are required to promote good sportsmanship as follows:

  1. Each league is required to educate its players, coaches, parents, spectators and officials to the accepted standards of good sportsmanship.
  2. Each league is required to prominently display a Code of Behavior at each playing site and distribute it to all players, coaches, etc. at the beginning of the season. The City’s recommended Code of Behavior is attached.
  3. Each league is required to have a designated person or group at each sporting event responsible for crowd control.
  4. Each league must position players away from the crowd, such as on the opposite side of the field or with a barrier between players and crowd.
  5. Each league must have a written policy explaining what disciplinary action will take place for unsportsmanlike conduct displayed by players, coaches, parents, or officials. For unsportsmanlike conduct that involves physical contact, the offender is immediately subject to suspension from participating in or attending sporting events. The said incident shall timely be reported to the Youth & Recreation Division. The league policy must be submitted to the Youth & Recreation Division before a contract to use a park/facility is given.
  6. Each league will be responsible for any damage that is done to the park/facility due to unsportsmanlike conduct.
  7. Each league shall be responsible for informing coaches/officials that, in the event of unsportsmanlike conduct involving physical violence, the Police Department should be contacted immediately and a police report filed.

If a league is found to be not enforcing their sportsmanship policy, the City of Olean has the right to either revoke this contract and not allow the league use of any City park/facility in the future or require the league to hire a police officer to be present at all sporting events.