A former US Olympic swimmer accused a former coach of the national team of sexually abusing her when she was 16, joining a chorus of young athletes in gymnastics and other sports who have come forward with similar allegations involving team officials.
US swimmer Ariana Kukors competes in the women's 200m individual medley heats swimming event at the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Olympic Park in London on July 30, 2012. AFP PHOTO / LEON NEAL / AFP PHOTO / LEON NEAL Photo: AFP
Ariana Kukors, who represented the United States in the 2012 Olympic Games, said Sean Hutchison, then a coach for USA Swimming's national team, began "grooming" her for a sexual relationship when she was 13.
"I've realized that stories like my own are too important to go unwritten," Ms Kukors, 28, said in a statement on Wednesday.
Mr Hutchison, 46, could not be reached for comment.
His swimming club, the King Aquatic Club in Washington state, said in a statement that the news "broke our collective hearts."
Mr Hutchison remained a club executive but had no "direct interaction with our swimmers for a very long time," the statement said.
Ms Kukors, whom the club described as "part of the King Aquatic family," said she first met Mr Hutchison through the club.
Investigators from the US Department of Homeland Security have searched Mr Hutchison's Seattle home, a department spokeswoman said, describing it as an investigation into "alleged online child exploitation," without giving further details.
Athletes have denounced US Olympic officials in recent weeks as reacting too slowly to reports of sexual abuse. The criticism grew from the emotionally charged sentencing hearings for Larry Nassar, the former USA Gymnastics team doctor who pleaded guilty to sexual abuse last year.
Ms Kukors echoed this complaint.
"Much like the USOC knew about Larry Nassar years before his arrest and did nothing, USA Swimming had notice in 2010 that Sean Hutchison was involved in an inappropriate coach-athlete relationship with Ariana and took no actions to protect her or other swimmers," her lawyer Robert Allard said in a statement.
USA Swimming said in a statement it investigated in 2010 a report that Mr Hutchison and Ms Kukors had a sexual relationship in breach of the organization's code of conduct. Both denied a relationship at the time, and the case was closed.
The governing body said it first learned of the allegations of sexual abuse while Ms Kukors was a minor for the first time when she went public this week. The group supported Ms Kukors and was helping the investigation.
"We stand by her, and all other victims, in their quest to break their silence and confront their horrific experiences," the statement said.
- Reuters