Alberto Salazar Is Suspended by SafeSport After Accusations of Verbal Abuse – The New York Times
Alberto Salazar Is Suspended by SafeSport After Accusations of Verbal Abuse The New York Times
Advertisement
The famed running coach was already barred from his sport for four years because of doping violations. He is now temporarily banned by the U.S. Center for SafeSport, an action that could produce a lifetime ban.
Alberto Salazar, the famed and disgraced distance running coach, has been placed on the United States Center for SafeSport’s temporarily banned list, a disciplinary action that could result in a lifetime ban.
The center investigates and rules on accusations of misconduct and abuse, and it maintains a centralized database of disciplinary action. The list includes ongoing investigations into coaches’ behavior.
Salazar’s name appeared on the list Friday, four months after the United States Anti-Doping Agency barred him from the sport for four years for doping violations, including tampering with the doping control process and trafficking in testosterone.
Salazar was not immediately available for comment.
In a statement, a spokesman for SafeSport said the organization “does not comment on specific matters to protect the integrity of the process and the parties involved, especially any potential victims.”
The center is investigating Salazar’s conduct toward women he coached, according to a person with knowledge of the investigation who requested anonymity because the person was prohibited from speaking publicly on the matter.
In October, two runners who once trained under Salazar, Mary Cain and Amy Yoder-Begley, came forward to describe what they said amounted to years of psychological and verbal abuse by the coach. According to the women, Salazar harangued them about their weight and embarrassed them in front of other runners by holding public weigh-ins and criticizing their appearance.
In a statement released at the time, Salazar denied that he had abused anyone.
As the head of the now-defunct Nike Oregon Project, an elite team organized and financed by the apparel company, Salazar coached a roster that included decorated runners like Mo Farah of Britain, Galen Rupp of the United States and Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands.
The Center for SafeSport primarily investigates physical or sexual abuse, but it has discretion to investigate other forms of abuse as well.