U.S. Cyclists Seek Further Reprimand For USOC Officials
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Cyclists Calling For USOC To Fire Roush For
Behavior In Handling Pollution Mask Incident |
The four U.S. Olympic cyclists who were "reprimanded for wearing anti-pollution masks" upon their August 5 arrival at the Beijing airport yesterday "called for further action against two USOC staff members for their behavior in handling the issue," according to Philip Hersh of the CHICAGO TRIBUNE. Cyclist Sarah Hammer yesterday in a conference call asked for the USOC to "publicly address the issue of staff misconduct and behavior" by USOC Chief of Sports Performance Steve Roush and Sports Partnerships Dir Kelly Skinner. The cyclists said that Skinner "humiliated them in a meeting at which other athletes were present while Roush sat them down privately the next morning and demanded an apology to the country, the city and [BOCOG] within 2 1/2 hours 'or else.'" USOC CEO Jim Scherr in a letter dated September 14 "apologized to the four track cyclists." Scherr in the letter wrote, "We apologize if you felt the USOC or your National Governing Body did not appropriately support you through this incident, and you should rest assured that this was not our intent." USOC Chief Communications Officer Darryl Seibel: "During his call with the athletes last week, Jim indicated he would address this matter internally, and he has done so. In our view, this matter is closed and behind us." Cyclist Bobby Lea said, "I would like to thank the USOC for clearing our names and apologizing for any mishandling of the situation. However, the bigger issue is the behavior of Steve Roush and Kelly Skinner. Their conduct was deplorable, and I feel they should be held accountable" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 9/16).
CHANGES NEEDED: Hammer, Lea and cyclist Jennie Reed all asserted that Roush "should be fired." Lea: "We're looking out for future Olympians. I would feel better about helping future Olympians than helping one person's job" (Colorado Springs GAZETTE, 9/16). Hammer yesterday said, "We were called a disgrace to the [U.S.] team and were belittled and embarrassed by the very people that are supposed to be advocates for us. They treated us like we were just stupid athletes and like we didn't matter." Seibel said, "We are acknowledging that some things could have been handled differently" (N.Y. TIMES, 9/16).
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