Peter Foley
Born1965 or 1966 (age 57–58)
Alma mater
OccupationFormer snowboarding coach
Years active1994–2022
EmployerFormerly U.S. Ski & Snowboard (USSS)
Known forSuspended by SafeSport for ten years for sexual misconduct
Children2
Awards
  • USSS Coach of the Year (2001)
  • USSS Snowboard Coach of the Year (2021)

Peter Foley (born 1965 or 1966) is an American former U.S. Ski & Snowboard (USSS) snowboarding coach.[1][2] Foley served as the head coach of the U.S. Snowboard team starting with when it was founded in 1994, including at three Olympics. In 2001, he was named USSS Coach of the Year, and in 2021 he was selected by USSS as Snowboard Coach of the Year. He was fired by USSS in March 2022, after sexual misconduct allegations were made. He had been the coach of the U.S. snowboarding team for 28 years. On August 8, 2023, SafeSport suspended him for ten years for sexual misconduct.

Biography

Early years

Foley is the son of Terry Foley, a Bend, Oregon native, former alpine ski racer, and ski coach.[3] He grew up as a ski racer in Colorado.[4] He initially attended the University of Colorado Boulder, and then transferred to the University of Oregon, where he studied journalism.[4] He began snowboarding in the early 1990s, and raced as a professional for two seasons.[4] As of 2010 he lived in Mt. Hood, Oregon, and in 2014 with his wife and two children in Hood River, Oregon.[4][5] He is also director of Product Development at Insight Replay, which he co-founded in 2013.[6][7]

Team USA snowboard team head coach

Foley served as the head coach of the U.S. Snowboard team starting in 1994, when it was founded, including at three Olympics, through 2022.[8][9] By 2022, he had led it to seven Olympic Games, at which team members won a combined 35 Olympic medals.[1] Foley was in charge of seeding and deciding which athletes competed in World Cup competitions, in addition to the Olympic team.[10] In 2001 he was named U.S. Ski & Snowboard (USSS) Coach of the Year, and in 2021 he was selected by USSS as Snowboard Coach of the Year.[11][12]

2022; Safety plan, dismissal as coach, temporary suspension

In February 2022 former USSS team member and 2010 Olympian Callan Chythlook-Sifsof made social posts on Instagram during the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics accusing Foley of sexual misconduct.[13][14][15][1][2] She wrote: "I cannot watch another Olympic Games without saying this publicly."[16][17] Foley denied the allegations vehemently.[15][1][18] USSS immediately implemented an "athlete safety plan" that prohibited Foley from having "one-on-one interaction with female athletes," and from going into an athlete village.[1][2]

USSS also immediately notified the U.S. Center for SafeSport, an organization authorized by the U.S. Congress to police reports related to sexual abuse in U.S. Olympic sports, upon learning of Chythlook-Sifsof’s Instagram post.[19] But on February 16, SafeSport Center vice president Bobby Click emailed USSS that: "based on the information the center has, we have chosen not to implement any types of measure."[19]

On February 21, 2022, USSS placed Foley on a leave of absence.[2][20] It fired him on March 20, 2022, days after the Beijing Olympics concluded.[18][2][20][21][22] He had been coach of the U.S. snowboarding team for 28 years.[18]

In March 2022, three former athletes and a former USSS employee also filed sexual misconduct complaints about Foley with SafeSport.[2][23] A former USSS employee said that in 2008 Foley coerced her into taking nude photos, and then sexually assaulted her as she said no and tried to move away from him, and eventually rolled her over and ejaculated on her back.[24] She alleged that he sexually assaulted her on two separate occasions.[25] One former athlete said that she was asleep in a hotel room when Foley slid in behind her, reached his "arm over my body and put his fingers inside me.”[26] SafeSport temporarily suspended Foley on March 18, 2022, pending its investigation.[23][1][19] The SafeSport temporary suspension was handed down over five weeks after the original Instagram post accusing Foley of sexual misconduct.[19]

USSS said that it had reported the allegations to the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC), as well as to SafeSport.[2]

2023; lawsuits, and 10-year suspension

In February 2023, Olympic bronze medalist Rosey Fletcher (parallel giant slalom) and other former USSS team members sued Foley, along with the national federation, its former CEO, and the USOPC, in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles for sex trafficking, harassment, and enabling and covering up repeated acts of sexual assault and misconduct, alleging that the defendants "conspired and acted in concert with one another to commit unlawful acts."[2] They alleged that Foley exploited his position of trust to "coerce sexual acts through force, manipulation, emotional abuse, intimidation, and retaliation."[2] Fletcher said that Foley sexually assaulted her at a U.S. team camp when she was 19, and again at a post-race event at the Olympics.[2] Former national team member Erin O'Malley alleged that she was "sexually assaulted and harassed ... by Foley, who exploited their unequal power dynamic."[2] Foley and the other defendants asked the court to throw out the lawsuit; a hearing is set for October 2023.[27]

Separately in February 2023, the former USSS employee who had previously filed a report with Safesport filed a lawsuit against Foley and others for the alleged sexual assaults.[2][15][28]

On August 8, 2023, after an 18-month investigation, SafeSport suspended Foley for ten years for sexual misconduct.[18][29][30][31]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Alyssa Roenigk and Tisha Thompson (March 18, 2022). "U.S. Snowboard head coach Peter Foley suspended by SafeSport after sexual misconduct allegations". ESPN.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Alyssa Roenigk and Tisha Thompson (February 3, 2023). "Olympians sue USOPC, others for sex trafficking". ESPN.
  3. ↑ Woodward, Bob (November 4, 2009). "A Serious Snow Jones: Predicting about and riding into winter". The Source Weekly – Bend.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "US Snowboard Team: Coaches; Peter Foley; Head Coach". Mountain Zone.
  5. ↑ Rachel Bachman (January 30, 2010). "Olympic snowboarders love to train at Mt. Hood, so why doesn't Oregon produce more Olympians of its own?". Oregonlive.
  6. ↑ "About Insight Replay; Peter Foley". Insight Replay.
  7. ↑ Brandon Wright (September 23, 2015). "Lennard breaks down the game … during the game". Tampa Bay Times.
  8. ↑ Eddie Pells (August 8, 2023). "Former US snowboard coach Peter Foley suspended for sexual misconduct," Seattle Times.
  9. ↑ Alyssa Roenigk (February 11, 2022). "U.S. Ski & Snowboard investigating allegations of sexual misconduct and racial slurs". ESPN.
  10. ↑ Malatesta, Parker (March 28, 2022). "Multiple women accuse ex-U.S. Snowboard coach Peter Foley of sexual misconduct". TownLift, Park City News.
  11. ↑ "Coach of the Year Awards". U.S. Ski & Snowboard.
  12. ↑ "Sprang, Norge Ski Club Honored As U.S. Ski & Snowboard Coach, Club Of The Year". U.S. Ski & Snowboard. May 18, 2021.
  13. ↑ John Branch (February 12, 2022). "A U.S. Olympic snowboarding coach is under investigation for sexual misconduct". The New York Times.
  14. ↑ Rachel Axon (March 22, 2022). "Report: Four women allege sexual misconduct by snowboarding coach Peter Foley". USA TODAY.
  15. 1 2 3 John Branch (March 22, 2022). "Snowboarding Coach Faces New Accusations of Sexual Misconduct; Peter Foley, already accused of coercing athletes into posing for nude photos, now faces scrutiny from more women. He has been relieved of his duties as a U.S. Olympic coach". The New York Times.
  16. ↑ Julie Jag (February 12, 2022). "Utah snowboarder Faye Gulini announces retirement, expresses support for embattled coach; On a day U.S. snowboarding wins gold, a former athlete accuses coach Peter Foley of inappropriate conduct toward women and building a toxic culture". The Salt Lake Tribune.
  17. ↑ Maxime Ducher (February 12, 2022). "l'entraîneur de snowboard américain Peter Foley accusé de harcèlement sexuel". Le Parisien.
  18. 1 2 3 4 Sean Neumann (August 9, 2023). "Longtime U.S. Snowboard Coach Peter Foley Suspended 10 Years for Sexual Misconduct; The decision concludes an 18-month investigation stemming from accusations made by a former U.S. Olympic team member". People.
  19. 1 2 3 4 Eddie Pells (April 14, 2022). "Sex-abuse case involving U.S. snowboard coach exposes flaws in new reporting system". Anchorage Daily News.
  20. 1 2 Alyssa Roenigk and Tisha Thompson (March 20, 2022). "Foley out at U.S. Snowboard after sexual misconduct allegations". ESPN.
  21. ↑ "Statement Regarding Termination Of U.S. Snowboard Coach Peter Foley". U.S. Ski & Snowboard. March 25, 2022.
  22. ↑ Aaro, David (March 20, 2022). "Peter Foley no longer employed by US Ski and Snowboard following sexual misconduct allegations; Foley served as the coach of the US snowboard team since its inception in 1994". Fox News.
  23. 1 2 Alyssa Roenigk and Tisha Thompson (March 22, 2022). "Women detail new sexual assault, misconduct allegations against ex-U.S. Snowboard coach Peter Foley". ESPN.
  24. ↑ "Former athletes accuse ex-U.S. Snowboard coach Peter Foley of sexual assault". Yahoo Sports. March 22, 2022.
  25. ↑ "Olympians sue USOPC, others for sex trafficking". ESPN.com. February 3, 2023.
  26. ↑ "Snowboarding Coach Faces New Accusations of Sexual Misconduct (Published 2022)". March 22, 2022.
  27. ↑ Bill Shaikin (August 8, 2023). "Former Team USA snowboard coach Peter Foley suspended 10 years for sexual misconduct". The Brunswick News.
  28. ↑ Daniela Perez (March 22, 2022). "Former U.S. snowboard coach Peter Foley accused of sexual assault". Sports Illustrated.
  29. ↑ "Centralized Disciplinary Database". U.S. Center for SafeSport.
  30. ↑ Les Carpenter (August 8, 2023). "Olympics; Former U.S. snowboard coach Peter Foley suspended after sexual misconduct probe," The Washington Post.
  31. ↑ Tom Schad (August 8, 2023). "SafeSport suspends ex-US Olympic snowboarding coach Peter Foley after sexual misconduct probe". USA TODAY.
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