The governing body of diving in the United States has been accused of ignoring allegations of sexual abuse in a case which echoes the scandal that rocked gymnastics, reports said Monday.
A federal lawsuit filed against USA Diving by two female former divers accuses coach Will Bohonyi of coercing and forcing them into sex while he worked at the Ohio State University Diving Club.
Bohonyi has been on USA Diving’s banned list since February 2015 for breaching code of conduct regulations related to sexual misconduct.
The lawsuit filed by the two divers alleges USA Diving only sanctioned Bohonyi six months after he had been fired from Ohio State when allegations were first levelled against him.
One of the women alleges Bohonyi sexually abused her in July 2014 and forced her to have sex with him the same month when she was 16.
The lawsuit said that when one of the women’s team-mates reported Bohonyi, Ohio State staff responded by sending the plaintiff home from a meeting in Tennessee.
“Bohonyi psychologically coerced [the woman] into believing that she was required to perform sexual services in exchange for her continued involvement in diving,” the lawsuit alleges.
“He preyed on her age, vulnerability, and dreams of becoming an Olympian, and used the power structure and imbalance of power to make her believe she was required to sexually service him in exchange for her involvement in diving for Team USA.”
Bohonyi’s accuser claims in the lawsuit USA Diving at first refused to investigate the coach but later reversed course when another athlete came forward with similar allegations.
USA Diving said in a statement on Monday that the body was committed to “providing a safe environment for our members.”
“We take these matters very seriously,” a spokeswoman said. “USA Diving is unable to comment further at this time.
News of the diving case comes after the abuse scandal which stunned USA Gymnastics involving Olympic team doctor Larry Nassar.
Nassar was sentenced in January to spend his life behind bars after pleading guilty to sexually assaulting more than 250 women and girls over a two-decade period under the guise of medical treatment.
In May, a separate lawsuit was filed by former Olympic swimmer Ariana Kukors Smith, who accused USA Swimming of covering up sexual abuse by her coach.
