The five hockey players from the Canadian junior team that won the gold medal in 2018 are: facing charges together with alleged collective sexual assault on a woman after the gala in London, Ont. six years ago.
Lawyers identified their customers as current and former NHL players: Michael McLeod and Cal Foote of the New Jersey Devils; Dillon Dubé of the Calgary Flames; Carter Hart of the Philadelphia Flyers; and Alex Formenton, currently of Swiss team HC Ambri-Piotta and formerly of the Ottawa Senators.
The players’ lawyers have issued individual statements claiming that their clients are innocent or have pleaded not guilty.
London police say they’re holding approx a press conference about the February 5 investigation.
Whatever comes next, it’s becoming increasingly clear that allegations of sexual assault can not be silenced or swept under the rug in sport AND other contexts.
Hockey Canada paid a still undeclared settlement to EM, the plaintiff in the case a Sexual assault lawsuit for $3.55 million against members of the 2018 world junior national team. Another $6.8 million was allocated to settlements related to Graham James, a junior hockey coach convicted of sexual assault on young players he coached in the Nineteen Nineties.
Hockey Canada released a total Since 1989, there have been $8.9 million in 21 sexual abuse settlements. Of that total, $7.6 million got here from membership dues and investments generated by the National Capital Fund, and $1.3 million got here from its insurance coverage. Hockey Canada has since made an announcement will not use funds from membership fees to resolve sexual assault claims.
More than a few bad apples
“The Lucifer Effect” by psychologist Philip Zimbardo argues that coping with abuse is not just about removing a few “bad apples” – often the whole barrel is bad. The entire barrel production system should be redesigned to provide only the best barrels to make sure the integrity and storage of the apples.
Sports preservation advocates argue that despite efforts equivalent to those recently announced Commission on the Future of Sport in Canada can address systemic issues by redesigning leadership and management structures in the sport, the remaining bad apples will proceed to abuse their power, derailing real change in ice hockey in Canada.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
Those who abuse their power and take advantage of power imbalances will use that power to take care of the establishment. Scientists have identified that typical leadership responses to claims of abuse include complicity, collusion, control, and canopy-up.
There is evidence of this in lots of Canadian national sports organizations attempting to make changes, including: Hockey Canada, Gymnastics Canada, Rowing Canada, Soccer Canada AND Bobsleigh and skeleton Canada.
According to Zimbardo’s theory, leaders must weed out the bad apples by addressing systemic issues – only then will they find a way to create and maintain high-quality, sustainable barrels. Otherwise, the existing bad apples will poison the latest ones, rotting the barrel from the inside.
Power in Canadian hockey
Hockey in Canada has seen wholesale changes with resignation and recreating each CEO AND management. The a latest CEO was appointed in September 2023but keep in mind that latest doesn’t necessarily mean different.
Sexual assault is an abuse of power. It may be argued that the culture of misogyny and sexual assault seen in hockey environments is a result abuse of power has grow to be the norm throughout the hockey world: :
- Coaches have power over athletes’ careers
- Hockey leagues have power over coaches’ careers
- Funders have power over CEOs
- Veterans have power over novices
- Men often exercise power over women
Although power structures and hierarchies are sometimes well-intentioned, they permit individuals and groups to abuse their power. Balance of power is usually sought and maintained as a flawed solution to achieve stability, security, domination and control.
(Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)
However, a lack of independence may also result in lack transparency and concrete responsibility processes, which ends up in a repeating cycle of abuse and corruption – a phenomenon well documented in academic, media AND government reports.
Repair of the sports system
Sport Canada’s leaders must weed out the bad apples as they rebuild a latest, power-balanced sports system based on independence, transparency and accountability. We just have to look at best practices in the sport itself as a blueprint for the entire Canadian sports system.
Independence should be built into the system by separating assessment and education from qualifications. Great coaches educate and evaluate athletes, but an independent body determines qualifications based on gold medal standards.
For example, the International and National Olympic Committees set qualifying standards for the Olympic Games, and international federations conduct research and ensure standards for gold medals in each sport.
National sports organizations must be guided by their international federations to adopt well-researched performance goals, criteria and measures, all of which must be made publicly available. Sport Canada should then apply these criteria to carry national sporting organizations accountable.
More transparency needed
Too often, coaches and organizational leaders obfuscate criteria and procedures to permit for subjective decision-making. An excellent coach publishes goals, criteria, and performance metrics early and infrequently, and athletes’ performance is published day by day and publicly.
This approach may be scaled to suit any organization or sports group. Sport Canada must be certain that the evaluation criteria are comprehensive, public, objective and based on standards of practice.
Transparency creates partnership model shared goals and a collaborative process, relatively than a model of authoritarian control and compliance with an imbalance of power.
Sports Canada needs accountability
Accountability requires concrete demonstrations of change. Sport Canada was disciplined for the implementation superficial box checking processes as Canadian Sports Governance Code AND report card system, which has since been discontinued.
If boards don’t provide each advice and a clear framework of accountability, it is straightforward for CEOs and executive directors to abuse their power.
According to principles of proper managementSport Canada must create a robust accountability framework that requires verifiable evidence of policy implementation and achievement of standards of conduct as co-financing condition.
To construct sports organizations, structures, rules and processes which can be protected, healthy and efficient, the balance of power in the system as a whole should be redesigned and elements susceptible to abuse of power removed.
Those who cause harm must even be removed and prosecuted under the law. Others who they hide abuse or are negligent observers they have to meet the same standards. Only through a commitment to independence, transparency and accountability can sports organizations grow to be spaces that promote not only excellence, but additionally the well-being of all its participants.
