U.S. Ski & Snowboard is investigating allegations of inappropriate behavior within the organization’s snowboardcross team.
The investigation comes shortly after Callan Chythlook-Sifsof, who competed with the team during the 2010 Olympics, accused U.S. Snowboard team head coach Peter Foley of sexual harassment,USA Todayreports.
Chythlook-Sifsof, 32, shared a series ofInstagram postsFriday in which sheclaimedFoley had “taken naked photos of female athletes for over a decade” and allegedly made a sexual comment to her and another female athlete when she was 17.
U.S. Ski & Snowboard spokesperson Tom Horrocks confirmed the investigation to PEOPLE, saying, “U.S. Ski & Snowboard has been made aware of the recent allegations. We take these allegations very seriously and the allegations are being investigated.”
Horrocks added the organization does not have further comment at this time.
Peter Foley.Doug Pensinger/Getty Images
In a separate post, shewrote, “I will not carry this stuff around anymore, there was bizarre behavior across the board. The people I’ve named have overtly behaved toxically but the truth is the culture on the team protected this behavior.”
She added, “Things have been normalized that are not okay. Other athletes have in engaged in racist, misogynist behavior, actively participated in the strange dynamics that Peter Foley created and caused female athletes/staff to be victims of sexual violence.”
Chythlook-Sifsof also accused her former teammate, Hagen Kearney, of repeatedly using racist language to provoke her. While she and Kearney were competing in 2014, Chythlook-Sifsof alleged he “routinely and continually used the n-word (as a norm) but intentionally to get under [her] skin.”
The athlete said she had been “battling with Hagen about his use of the word all of 2014,” but “it came to a head at the last Olympic qualifier in Canada.”
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Kearney did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Foley and Kearney are currently representing the U.S. at the Beijing Winter Olympics. Kearney competed in the men’s snowboardcross event on Thursday, in which he finished 17th.
source: people.com
