Peter Foley, coach for years of the American snowboard team is accused by a former athlete of sexual harassment.
As the US Snowboard Team racks up medals at the Olympics, one of their coaches, Peter Foley, is at the center of controversy. The latter was accused Friday of sexual harassment by a former athlete, Callan Chythlook-Sifsof, who was part of the national team during the Vancouver Games in 2010. On Instagram, the now retired one directly accused the coach in a series of messages. She claimed that the latter “has been taking photos of naked athletes for a decade.” She also told how in her early days, at 17, she found herself with this man “whispering between my ear and that of my teammates that he wanted to put his” tongue in her pussy “about a very young Argentina dancing on the floor. “It’s the truth,” she wrote. “The people I named openly behaved in a toxic way, but the truth is that the team culture protected this behavior. Things have been normalized. Other athletes have engaged in racist and misogynistic behavior, actively participated in the strange dynamic created by Peter Foley, and caused sexual violence against female athletes/staff.” Callan Chythlook-Sifsof claims that other more serious facts took place but that this is not his story, although they should be “brought to light”.
She also accused other members of the team, including Hagen Kearney, who took part in the Beijing Olympics, of having made racist remarks and of having harassed her regularly in 2014. Facts that the latter does not deny not since he explained “having learned from his mistakes and today being a better person”. He indicated that actions were taken at the time regarding this story. As for Peter Foley, he too reacted. Quoted by the “New York Times” on Saturday, he said he was “totally surprised by these accusations” which he “firmly” denies. “We take these accusations very seriously and are currently investigating,” the US Ski and Snowboard Federation responded. An investigation is expected to be launched by the US Center for SafeSport, an independent body that handles allegations of abuse and misconduct in Olympic sports.
“I can only say good things about this man”
Meanwhile, Peter Foley, who has coached the team since 1994, has received support from Olympic snowboard cross champions Lindsey Jacobellis and Nick Baumgartner, who won the team event on Saturday. “I can only say good things about this man, he has done so much for us. All the best times of my life have been with this gentleman,” said Nick Baumgartner. “From the height of my 20-year career, I can only say good things about him and he has always supported me when needed,” added Lindsey Jacobellis, saying it was “irritating” to have to manage this. kind of accusations as the team tries to stay focused.
After the controversy erupted, Callan Chythlook-Sifsof posted a message from former snowboarder Trevor Jacob, who did the Sochi Games and is now a Youtuber. “You are pathetic, shame on you for trying to confuse others,” he wrote to her. “SHAME ON YOU. Peter Foley and Hagen Kearney are more human than you will ever be. It’s the only way for you to make noise during these Olympics, by throwing false information on others. But you just weren’t good enough to qualify. I doubt you would have said all that if you had been selected for the Olympic team. Shame on you. Use your energy to do positive things, not putting others down. Kiss my ass”. “Trevor Jacob seems to be scared…”, replied the young woman.
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