Conal Groom, a former United States Olympian and National Team coach, has been suspended from rowing for seven years by the U.S. Center for SafeSport. The Washington Post reports that the nonprofit agency made the decision after an investigation that cited 12 accusers of various misconduct dating from at least 2014, including emotional and physical misconduct, harassment, and nonconsensual sexual contact. That is many more accusers than were previously known, according to past reporting from the Post. Janean Acevedo Daniels, the lawyer for one of Groom’s unnamed accusers, categorized the ban as a vindication of the accusers, but adds, “we do not understand why Groom has not been permanently banned from coaching.”
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The process is indeed murky. As the Post explains, “It is unclear what went into SafeSport’s determination. The nonprofit agency’s investigations and decision-making are shrouded in secrecy. A SafeSport spokesperson said it could not provide any comment on Groom’s case beyond the spare information on the agency’s website.” In fact, it was USRowing’s Exclusion List that outlined the duration of the suspension and the number of claimants, information missing from SafeSport’s own report.
Groom has said that he has “no intention to coach again in any way.” Since the suspension, he has been selling chicken, quail, and duck eggs through a company he started – “Repechage Ranch.”
