Canadian bobsled, skeleton athletes calling for resignations amid toxic culture

CALGARY – Citing systemic points throughout the nationwide sport group, a few of Canada’s high bobsled and skeleton athletes are calling for the resignation of this system’s high employees members.

A letter signed by greater than 60 athletes was despatched Monday to Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton’s board of administrators, calling for the resignation of president Sarah Storey and excessive efficiency director Chris Le Bihan.

The transfer comes two weeks after the closure of the Beijing Olympics, the place Justin Kripps piloted Canada’s four-man sled to a bronze medal.

The letter cites points with tradition, security, transparency and governance, claiming employees makes arbitrary choices on issues like group choice based mostly on biases, and has little concern for athlete security.

Canada’s skeleton group competed on the Beijing Olympic check occasion this previous fall, for instance, with out a coach current, which led to quite a few bumps and bruises on the unfamiliar monitor.

Athletes on the event group say that they had no entry to medical therapy at a camp at Whistler, B.C., together with a bobsled athlete who was ejected from a sled.

A number of skeleton athletes lately informed The Canadian Press that they have been nearly utterly self-funded.

Mirela Rahneva, who was fifth in ladies’s skeleton in Beijing, estimated her Olympic season value her about $30,000.

The letter mentioned “systemic points inside BCS have adversely impacted each the sports activities of bobsleigh and skeleton and have grow to be more and more problematic. Many athletes have suffered bodily, mentally, emotionally and financially because of the group failing to deal with these systemic points, and the way forward for each sports activities are in jeopardy beneath the present administrative regime.

“The athletes imagine that the fast resignation . . . is required to shift the tradition of this group right into a secure, supportive, purposeful athlete-centric mannequin from which to construct future world and Olympic champions.”

The 60-plus signees included each present and retired athletes who competed since 2014.

This report by The Canadian Press was first printed March 7, 2022.