alyse lahue relationship

The club also wrote to the Joint Investigative Team that Johnson and Malik spoke with Plush from the NWSL, with Gulati and Flynn from U.S. Soccer, and with Paulson from the Thorns. One player recalled that O'Connor announced there were allegations made against Holly, an investigation was conducted, and there was an "overwhelming amount of evidence to prove the allegations were correct." However, he could not recall any request by Holly or Holly's attorney that the provision bind the club. Unwanted Sexual Advances Toward Players The same HR employee who spoke to Levine about Farrelly's complaint told the Joint Investigative Team that she printed the complaint and handed it to Levine. Although these measures are a significant improvement from prior years, the joint report noted significant gaps in the vetting protocols, including a lack of a reputational check. Such a check would require additional research including reference interviews from former players at the youth and professional levels as well as other contacts. Riley-who is around 15 years older than Farrelly-began lowering professional boundaries with Farrelly during that time, including by focusing his attention on her during nights out drinking with the team, asking probing personal questions, and telling her she was "beautiful." The announcement finally came on July 16, about a termination that happened on July 9. According to Wilkinson, he told Lines that U.S. Soccer had the investigative report regarding Riley. Horan also said "the French coach was very brutal with it." Within a few months, investors had spent what was originally expected to sustain the league for three to five years. 2. Players reported that as a result of reporting misconduct or supporting others in doing so, they were verbally abused, isolated and ignored by coaches, removed from starting roles, waived, traded, and not re-signed, among other consequences. While the report summary downplayed players' concerns in spite of the evidence, it credited Dames's and Whisler's explanations of events without further scrutiny. For a number of players and fans, the spark behind this new era is interim general manager Alyse LaHue, whose can-do, laser-focused attitude towards implementing positive changes has led to Sky Blue setting and reaching new goals. Stanton reflected that Dames "knew how to take the things that meant the most to you and turn them against you." Club staff should be advised to elevate to the NWSL not only formal complaints and reports of misconduct they receive, but also any observed misconduct or alleged misconduct of which they otherwise become aware. Club staff must be held to higher standards. Players reported that the relationship between Williams and the owners made players feel that any complaints raised to ownership would get back to Williams. Players reported they raised concerns during this meeting regarding Williams's ineffectiveness as a coach and unprofessional and demeaning communication style. The location of Shim's and Farrelly's interviews-the Thorns's stadium-was not an appropriate setting for such a sensitive conversation and contributed to Shim feeling uncomfortable and concerned that staff would see her being interviewed. As one staff member explained, there had always been a high interest and attention in this player by LaHue., The new investigation by the league and union said LaHue participated in an initial interview with the Joint Investigative Team but canceled a second scheduled interview and declined the Joint Investigative Teams repeated requests to reschedule., This was accompanied, investigators further said, by an email from LaHues lawyer calling the allegations false claims., READ MORE: U.S. Soccer promises action after Yates investigation details abuse and sexual coercion in NWSL. The Flash, the predecessor club to the Courage, began speaking with Riley regarding the head coach position in January 2016, around a month after Aaran Lines stepped down as head coach and became vice president of the Flash. On September 20, 2020, the Royals placed Head Coach Craig Harrington on a leave of absence, which public reporting stated was related to "inappropriate comments of a sexual nature with staff." A player reported similar conduct by Dames to The Washington Post. Kaleigh Kurtz reported to the club that Riley made her uncomfortable and called her "chubby," and the club responded by telling Riley that he should speak to players about fitness," not "weight." Kurtz said her biggest fear was being considered a "troublemaker" for reporting misconduct, but she feels now that "players who come forward will be protected." While some players expressed doubt that the SafeSport trainings were helpful, one player recalled that the SafeSport training made her realize she was experiencing sexual harassment; however, the player also noted that the training did not provide any NWSL-specific resources to help players experiencing misconduct. Nonetheless, substantial work remains to be done to ensure the safety of players in the NWSL, and effective change will need to last beyond one commissioner. Estes, O'Connor, and Wilkins attended this meeting with players. 53, indicating he wanted to go to Simon's apartment and describing "inappropriate things he would do." I don't think it's common in the sports world to have an MBA. One player reported that Dames had one-on-one dinners with players where he made comments about their appearances and dating lives. Founded in 2009 in Chicago. It defines harassment as "unwelcome conduct, whether verbal, physical or visual, that is based upon a person's race or any other protected status." There's no one. Holly also sent Simon videos of himself masturbating on Snapchat. Cromwell told club leadership in reference to these players that the negative players suck the life out of this team," and that they were miserable people" and "bullies." sex. For example, the NWSL engaged a third-party investigator specializing in workplace investigations to conduct investigations into former Royals owner Dell Loy Hansen in 2020, Dash stadium security in 2021, and LaHue in 2021. Hammond said that Kurtz's agent had requested a trade, and Hammond reached out to teams to try to find a trade for Kurtz. Multiple players recognized the frequency of these invitations and communications as "not normal and "inappropriate." In one instance, the report dismissed concerns about Dames's racist comments as "not supported by recent examples," finding that "the three examples of alleged inappropriate remarks, if they were made, were insensitive and perhaps thoughtless, but not made with any apparent intent." Although Plush asserted that he tried to dissuade the Flash from pursuing Riley, he did not give the Flash any information about why they should not pursue Riley. if you don't want it, get a regular job. In one case, a member of club leadership, while following up on younger players' complaints of staff mistreatment, was told by more seasoned players that the younger players were "entitled" and did not appreciate, for example, that the club provided them meals at the training facility. It was not an official or recognized union; it had no full-time staff, and it was run by active players. Riley also engaged in other inappropriate behavior during his tenure on the Thorns, and he surrounded himself with staff members who were not likely to speak out against him. Even within the soccer world, the player explained, a tone appropriate for the field would not be appropriate in other settings, such as locker rooms, team dinners, or one-on-one meetings with players. Clarkson put her in as a substitute, and she soon began struggling with pain. Levine learned in February 2016 that the Flash would announce their hiring of Riley, and she learned information from Plush to suggest that the Thorns had perhaps not been candid with the Flash regarding the 2015 allegations or findings against Riley. Multiple players and club staff reported that in 2017, while Holly was head coach of Sky Blue, he began dating Pearce Rampone. On September 15, 2014, legal counsel for the USWNTPA emailed Gulati a memorandum of that meeting, which included a summary of Press's comments that Dames "created a hostile work environment." E. Standards for Assessing Reports of Misconduct.. Even as individuals at U.S. Soccer came to the conclusion that Riley's conduct made him unsuitable to be a national team coach, no one took any action to remove him from coaching NWSL players. Lack of Transparency with NWSL Clubs About Riley's Conduct Summary of Inappropriate Conduct.. A. . Both Gulati and U.S. Soccer CEO Dan Flynn received the NWSL player survey results from 2014, which included information about potential misconduct by both Riley and Dames. A player similarly described Riley policing details, like players' off-field wardrobes, and described his behavior as creating a constant state of being on edge." The overlap of the two reports also proved problematic in some cases. When Stanton started "bawling [her] eyes out," Dames told her, "Your response is making me feel better about the accusation." Club Statement on NWSL/NWSLPA Report pic.twitter.com/ATZPBk1pxc, The Philadelphia Inquirer published a statement they received from LaHues lawyer, Kelly Hoffman following the release of the Joint Investigative Report on Wednesday. One player remarked, The relationship lines are very strange in the NWSL." This investigation found that players lacked effective channels for reporting inappropriate behavior. Consider Engaging a Third Party to Provide Mental Health First-Aid Training for All NWSL and Club Staff and Players In September 2021, The Athletic publicly reported on the existence of a prior, more extensive history between Riley and Farrelly, which was suggested by Shim to the Thorns investigator in 2015, but not explored in that investigation. Another player echoed this sentiment, saying, There are relationships in the League between player and coach, and there have been for a long time. Romantic relationships between players and staff members pose several potential problems, including (i) the power Truth Be Told: The Fight for Women's Professional Soccer, stream on ESPN+. These protocols mandated that all coach, general manager, and president hires had to be approved by the NWSL and that such employees had to complete a New Hire Certification, complete an NWSL-directed background check, and have certain language included in their contracts. Throughout Dames's tenure as head coach of the Red Stars, owner Arnim Whisler minimized and dismissed players' concerns that Dames was verbally and emotionally abusive. Both players and staff on the Current described disproportionately angry responses by their former head coach, Huw Williams, to routine questions in the course of games or practices. OL was supportive of the decision to hire Benstiti, who had been employed as a head coach for OL from 2001-10. 2. Christy Holly (Sky Blue, Assistant Coach, 2013-2015 and Head Coach, 2016-2017; Racing Louisville, Head Coach, 2020-2021) Burke called players insulting names, like moron, fucking asshole," and "cheat," and explicitly threatened to waive players who challenged his conduct or otherwise disagreed with him. Leading up to this meeting, Simon had been nervous, because she had been able to avoid one-on-one meetings with Holly until then. Misconduct in the League is not wholly independent from abuse that begins in youth soccer, where many coaches' and players' formative experiences shaped the way they engaged in, or reacted to, misconduct and abuse in the NWSL. The players were not told which complaints had been substantiated and were told only that the "club has taken and will continue to take certain follow up actions as necessary to address these issues, whether real or perceived." Racing Louisville investigated but did not substantiate a relationship between Holly and the staff member. Those findings will remain confidential and the league will not comment further on individual club personnel matters., Now, further details have come to light. Wilkins similarly recalled O'Connor or Estes stating that Holly had a potentially inappropriate relationship with a player. Another player said Dames was "hostile and sarcastic" and would "shame" her, but would not pick on the top players" or "anyone with leverage." They warned Predmore that he [needed] to double check on Benstiti's comments to Horan and noted that they were "flagging it for him. The agreement also expressly permitted Holly to provide an honest assessment of players' performances-including Simon-notwithstanding the risk that he would retaliate against Simon or others by sharing negative feedback with scouts or coaches. OL Reign's July 2021 announcement that former OL Reign Head Coach Farid Benstiti had resigned from the club made no mention of his disparaging comments. The USSF Dames Report noted that Dames denied knowing the impact of his demands, but the report did not find his denial to be credible. Plush eventually resigned as CEO of USA Curling nearly a month after the Yates report detailed his inaction and culpability in allowing Riley to continue coaching in the NWSL following Riley's 2015 sexual misconduct in Portland. 75, Benstiti saying that he would replicate his "very strict monitoring and measuring [of Horan's] weight and what she's eating" with the club's players. Two players recalled an instance when Harrington, former head coach for the Utah Royals and assistant coach for the Red Stars, went out drinking with players after a game and noted that Harrington had drank to excess. Pauw's presence at the same apartment complex created anxiety among players. Players There were also multiple process failures during the USSF Dames Investigation, which left notable gaps in its fact-finding. Multiple players reported that Holly complimented a Racing Louisville player about her hair in one of her Instagram photographs; she was wearing a bathing suit in the photograph. Multiple players said that they felt they could not decline social invitations from coaches. The Thorns's policy similarly stated that remedial action will be taken "if the company determines that unlawful harassment has occurred, and it lists examples of "[p]rohibited unlawful harassment." Instead, the report concluded: "The only result that is clearly called for by this external review is the establishment of standards for conduct by NWSL coaches and education on those standards, to resolve any uncertainty going forward." 2. However, Benstiti did not comply with that directive. . The training should be engaging and interactive. Another member of the team said that LaHue paid special attention to this player and described instances in which she believed LaHue provided preferential treatment or sought to be close to the player. Additionally, Whisler repeatedly minimized and dismissed concerns raised by players and staff about Dames. Clarkson denied ever raising his voice at players or losing control of his emotions, notwithstanding credible evidence to the contrary. In explaining this limited scope, the investigator stated that she did not have "unfettered discretion in the investigation." Around 2020, the NWSLPA took on a more active and public role in advocating for player safety and well-being. The same player noted that when players considered raising concerns, they wondered, "Are we going to ruin something? Around the same time, on July 1, 2021, OL Reign decided to remove Benstiti from the club, and asked for his resignation that same day. During this conversation, he asked Holly, "How would you like to handle that?" On August 16, 2017, Sky Blue announced that Holly was "stepping down" as head coach, and the club said it had come to a mutual agreement with Holly" and that he left "on good terms." She was. When asked about this incident, Burke denied ever having yelled at a player who appeared to be experiencing a panic attack and explained that he always tried to make players laugh and feel comfortable before and during games. Multiple players reported that there was an overlap between these players and those who had been vocal at the meeting. A few days later, Plush emailed Gulati, Flynn, and Levine and recounted a "long conversation" with Lines. Farrelly described this as a build-up with Riley. Simon told Holly she was uncomfortable and did her best to get out of the house, but she did not want to anger Holly because she was scared. As one player said regarding the owner of her team, He made it seem like his players were his kids-which, if you had the owner of the Knicks saying that to one of his players, that's weird. Flynn, on the other hand, in written responses to questions posed by U.S. Soccer, stated that he never reviewed the Thorns's final investigative report and did not have a complete understanding of the findings of the investigation. Multiple players also said that Dames commented on players' attractiveness. That's the problem with this league. While the NWSL and clubs have worked to strengthen their HR resources, many players continue to gravitate towards the NWSLPA as the safest reporting mechanism: even veteran players on the USWNT told the Joint Investigative Team that they would default to bringing their concerns through the NWSLPA. On the eve of the Washington Post's November 2021 story on Dames's abusive conduct, in the midst of two ongoing investigations by the Joint Investigative Team and U.S. Soccer into misconduct towards players, and despite Dames having already resigned, Whisler entered into a confidential separation agreement with Dames. For much of the NWSL's history, the NWSL and many of its clubs did not employ any designated HR staff. Paulson told the Joint Investigative Team that Garcia conducted the investigation at the law firm's direction, though the exact nature of the firm's role is unclear because the Thorns withheld much of the relevant information from the Joint Investigative Team, claiming it is protected by the attorney-client privilege and is attorney work product. In the almost year and half period from May 2018 to September 2019, the investigator spoke to only nine players. "The lack of clearly established responsibilities allowed individuals within these institutions to disclaim personal responsibility for player protection and to turn a blind eye or shift blame to other individuals and entities, while players were left exposed to further misconduct and unsafe environments. The League should also consider whether these groups can play a role in developing and implementing League-wide initiatives related to DEI. Levine explained to the Joint Investigative Team that she made the report "the day [she] learned of [the] sexual relationship between [Riley] and a player," referring to Farrelly. Pauw appeared to want to control and micromanage players' diets and exercise regimens even when her weight loss On October 11, 2022, Paulson further stated that he was removing himself as CEO of the Thorns and the Portland Timbers, and was announcing a search for a permanent CEO. When he spoke to the investigator, Whisler indicated that he was aware of players' concerns even before Press's complaint. 78, reasons for the waiver/contract buyout and other proposed waivers, several additional considerations supported the conclusion that retaliation was a motivating factor. The League and Clubs Failed to Take Adequate Steps to Protect Players in Hiring and Filling Positions The League did not have standing meetings with the NWSLPA, and communications remained informal and irregular. Trainings should also encourage players and staff to report bullying, harassment, discrimination, racist behavior, or other misconduct they experience or observe. One player also observed that her club was silent on issues of racism by not recognizing Juneteenth or doing work to support the Black community, which she said was in contrast to her former club where there were frequent discussions regarding anti-racism and her coach thought "about the broader world and how that could affect your performance." In response to the complaint made directly to the League, Baird spoke with Malik and Riley to relay that Riley should not be speaking to players about their weight; rather, weight and fitness issues should be handled by a nutritionist. Another player recalled that Riley loved the feeling of controlling our lives, and that he acted on this feeling by chang[ing] the schedule at the last minute" and "withhold[ing] information Former NWSL commissioner Jeff Plush responded to the joint investigators after refusing to speak with Yates & Co., though the report indicates that Plush only provided written responses. Following the September 30, 2021, publication of the Athletic article detailing allegations against Courage Head Coach Paul Riley, the NWSLPA released a statement announcing that players would "no longer be complicit in a culture of silence that has enabled abuse and exploitation in [the League] and in [soccer]." For example, a member of club management reported that when Sky Blue hired Christy Holly as their head coach in August 2020, he was not subject to a criminal background check. Some players recalled that a former assistant coach, while at a club-sponsored party where he was drinking heavily, made sexually explicit remarks to players. For example, the League's former interim CEO, Marla Messing, recalled multiple instances where, due to her experience in the soccer community, she was able to identify potential hires by clubs who were "terrible" or "abusive," but who had received clean background checks.

How Do I Cancel My Columbus Dispatch Subscription, Is Royal Yoakum Related To Dwight, Blahoo Baby Stroller Instructions, Articles A