Guelph Implodes

Check the Toronto Star this week for "Suspension for Ajax coach who had affair with athlete is upheld"

thletics Ontario has rejected an appeal by an Ajax track and field coach who was suspended from the sport for two years after engaging in an inappropriate sexual relationship with an adult athlete.

Randy Brookes is engaging in “a dangerous line of argument” in minimizing his affair with the athlete because it was consensual, according to the decision by Athletics Ontario president Dean Hustwick.

“The issue with engaging in a sexual relationship with a person over whom you have power is that consent cannot be considered truly voluntary,” Hustwick wrote in the decision, dated Jan. 3.

“Consent does not make the activity acceptable.”

Brookes, the 42-year-old head coach of the Gazelles athletics club — which serves Durham Region and the Greater Toronto Area — was suspended for two years last October after an independent hearing into two complaints concerning harassment of an AO member. The panel determined the complaints were valid, based on a sexual relationship between Brookes and an adult athlete while he was acting as the athlete’s coach.

OHCANADA wrote:

Randy Brookes is engaging in “a dangerous line of argument” in minimizing his affair with the athlete because it was consensual, according to the decision by Athletics Ontario president Dean Hustwick.

“The issue with engaging in a sexual relationship with a person over whom you have power is that consent cannot be considered truly voluntary,” Hustwick wrote in the decision, dated Jan. 3.

“Consent does not make the activity acceptable.”

.

Sure does under the Charter.

Yes, I voluntarily chose to have sex with this man, because I was horny , and the Charter protected my rights as a woman.

You guys don't get it. You are still living in a previous century where women had no rights, and could not be assertive in expressing their desires.

Now show me exactly what happened, in terms of DST.

Ernest wrote:

Aside from her S.O., Josh Seifarth, she asked Richard Lee to coach her when she moved for Vancouver. That didn't seem to work out...

Howie Gordy wrote:

Hey who coaches Dayna Pidhoresky?

http://www.daynapidhoresky.com/images/gallery2/5.jpg

Does not matter. Originally I was pissed when he dissed Dennis for putting her through interval training programs. But eventually he resolved the needs of his athlete, a work in progress, possibly through lactic threshold work, on a limited mileage program, resulting in a 2:29 in Canada - no easy doing. So congrats Josh.

There's more than one way to the top, and he found it.

As for Brown, what a beautiful bio-mechanical athlete, and psychological drive.

As devil's advocate, inappropriateness of an adult Coach-Athlete relationship hinges not on imbalance of power, but degree of it. In an educational setting, that power imbalance is significant and as is usual gap in imaturity level - but for a recreational or club coach, for example, citing an unacceptable power imbalance in every athlete-coach situation seems a stretch. It's possible for an athlete to be impartially and competently coached before/during/after some consenting adult relationship - and in any case, if that seems messy, there are plenty of clubs and coaches around, and also plenty who choose to run unattached or self-coach. There's difference between "distasteful", frowned upon", "awkward", and being so inappropriate to be grounds for firing. That red line seems to have moved -- because a boat load of high-profile coaches could be on the chopping block if this standard is applied retroactively.

Ernest wrote:

As devil's advocate, inappropriateness of an adult Coach-Athlete relationship hinges not on imbalance of power, but degree of it.

In an educational setting, that power imbalance is significant and as is usual gap in imaturity level - but for a recreational or club coach, for example, citing an unacceptable power imbalance in every athlete-coach situation seems a stretch.

OHCANADA wrote:

Check the Toronto Star this week for "Suspension for Ajax coach who had affair with athlete is

So you don't agree that the female athlete could hold the power imbalance in this relationship given the male's proclivity towards sexual conquest.

Still old school, and failure mode.

Suggestion:

This argument between you two is getting tired, old, lame, sad, boring, useless, distracting and childish.

I don't think I know either of you, but why don't you exchange email addresses and take this off of a forum regarding a HIGHLY sensitive subject that is apparently still being investigated.

And Fred (not taking sides), but the university acted quickly, Athletics Canada acted swiftly and someone is apparently providing this information leading to the firing et al.

So that means there is evidence of something that is fireable. Make sense? If not, re-read again until you fully comprehend.

Wet Coast wrote:

And Fred (not taking sides), but the university acted quickly, Athletics Canada acted swiftly and someone is apparently providing this information leading to the firing et al.

So that means there is evidence of something that is fireable. Make sense? If not, re-read again until you fully comprehend.

2006. Nope they buried it, or the person in charge gave a 4 month penalty and hoped it would go away.

Wet Coast wrote:

Make sense? If not, re-read again until you fully comprehend.

Duh, only 13 years.

There's a bit more to this case than simply a coach-athlete relationship. You can dig it up if you want to. Had to do with harassment off the top of my head.

And for full transparency, I don't recommend coaches having relationships with their athletes, especially if they are married.

Thanks for the entertainment. Take care.

fred wrote:So you don't agree that the female athlete could hold the power imbalance in this relationship given the male's proclivity towards sexual conquest.

Still old school, and failure mode.

Again, it doesn't matter in the context of a university program. A university coach can not have a relationship with a student athlete. It's a fireable offense. Yes, contracts being an employer and an employee are very "old school"...

Interesting pic. The irony............

I was going to move on, but I can't . What is the irony in the pic? Brown put the hammer down, because that's what she does

Oh, I sees the big picture. The irony is sumpins may or may not of happened that predated this situation establishing a precedent that may or may not of happened. But, that's the way life is.

First saw MB indoors at the U of W hammering the field. What's not to like.

Doing a therapeutic/spiritual phase at 33 seems about right on schedule. Everything unfolds in time.

OK, Guelph may be imploding for some people, but recognizing talent on all planes, MB is the greatest human to come out of Guelph.

Second place is Virginia to Vegas.