A big fight broke out between several swimming associations in Sweden.
A club is boycotted after they take a 19-year-old to a foreign camp – awaiting sentencing for sex crimes.
– It’s terrible trampling on us and against children, says one of the clubs.
In early March, the trial took place against a 19-year-old swimmer accused, among other things, of sexual harassment. He was accused of promoting a girl in the same association and exploiting her to send nude pictures of himself.
Two weeks later, the 19-year-old was found guilty of two counts. He was given a suspended sentence and had to pay compensation to the girl who felt bad and stopped swimming in the club.
But in the gap between the trial and them, the young man was in a swimming camp outside. Five other associations were on the trip, claiming they hadn’t heard a word about what the 19-year-old was accused of.
At least four clubs intersect
– I personally did not take such a person to the camp at that point. It is a matter of values. But the least one could ask is that responsible leaders are at least raising the issue with the rest of us. We need to know how we can secure the environment for children, says a leader in another association.
According to Sportbladet information, at least four clubs will now boycott the association in question. They will not participate in any joint camps and refuse to attend the popular competition organized by the club.
– To protect our privacy and we choose not to contact them, says another leader.
The club in question believes that it has tried to act properly in a sensitive situation, among other things by creating a so-called crisis and question group swedish sports federation about help. They have put off the young swimmer’s training for a while, but they don’t want to stand in the way of his investment forever.
Nobody from the club shows up for the interview and via email they don’t want to answer specific questions about the camp. They say they don’t know the province.
The board member writes:
– We dealt with the situation based on the best capabilities and with the support of the Swedish Sports Federation. We welcome the discussion led by the Swedish Sports Federation on how we and other sports federations can better deal with similar situations in the future.