Katie Uhlaender of the United States has told DW that the head coach of Canada's skeleton team manipulated a weekend qualifying event for next month's Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina.
According to Uhlaender, a five-time Winter Olympian, Joe Cecchini admitted to the scheme in a telephone call with her. She said Ceccini's actions had dashed her hopes of making it to Italy for a sixth Winter Games.
"I cried when I found out he went through with this plan," said Uhlaender, who has represented the United States at five Olympic Games, beginning in Torino 2006.
"I didn't know if it hurt more that my friend of 20 years just nailed my coffin, my Olympic dream is over. Or, that my best friend of 20 years is doing something so horrible that hurts so many people."
According to Uhlaender, six Canadian women had been lined up to race in the North American Cup at Lake Placid, New York on Sunday before four were instructed to pull out of the competition at the last minute, reducing the size of the field to below 21.
Crucially, this meant fewer qualifying points were on offer and, as a result, it made it more difficult for Canadian athletes to be caught in the Olympic qualifying rankings.
According to Uhlaender, Cecchini — who competed for Italyat the 2018 Winter Olympics — told her in a telephone call on Friday night that he wanted to "eliminate any possibilities" that Canada's Jane Channell, a veteran of two Winter Olympics, could fail to qualify.
Uhlaender said that when she pleaded with him to change his mind, Cecchini asked how it was his responsibility to "uplift" other countries.
Uhlaender's account of the call is backed up by an email forwarded to DW by a separate source.
The email, which the source said was sent by Cecchini to Canadian team members, explains that the decision to withdraw athletes was made to "ensure that we have a complete and accurate understanding of the points landscape, qualification implications and confirmed start numbers," adding that participation would be determined in the "best interests of the national team."
Uhlaender went on to win the competition in Lake Placid, but due to her being awarded fewer points for her victory, failed to secure a place at the Milan-Cortina Games.
She is now calling on the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) to investigate Cecchini's behavior, accusing him of using "bullying" tactics on other nations and his own team.
"It's the fact that he's shown his younger athletes that one athlete is more important than them," Uhlaender, 41, said. "What is it teaching them? They're scared to speak out. They want to race.
"He did not have to do that. He did it because he could. And it wasn't to protect his athletes; it was to manipulate the system. He waited until after everyone was registered and gave the illusion that the Canadians were going to be competing. He wanted to make sure that we could not get full points."
Athletes from Denmark, Israel and Malta were also affected by the Canadian team's withdrawals. Along with the United States, their head coaches wrote to the athletes' commission of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), raising "serious concerns" about the qualification process.
While it is unclear whether any rules have been broken, Uhlaender suggested that Cecchini's actions violated the IOC's code of ethics on competition manipulation, which all skeleton athletes and coaches are required to follow.
"I'm hoping the IBSF does the right thing and awards full points for this race because of the competition manipulation that Canada exhibited," Uhlaender said.
"And I'm hoping that someone does an investigation into his [Cecchini's] behavior. I'm worried for those athletes, because I don't want Joe to retaliate against them."
When Cecchini was offered the chance to respond to the allegations personally, he asked DW to contact his national federation, Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton (BCS).
In a statement, BCS said racing what it called the "young and relatively new" athletes was "not in their best interests" and that withdrawing them was "appropriate, transparent and aligned with both athlete welfare and the integrity of the sport."
In addition, BCS said a senior athlete had written to the Canadian coaches on behalf of the team to express "full support" for the decision. BCS said the idea that athletes were scared to speak out "could not be further from the truth."
DW has approached the IBSF and IOC for comment.
Curated by Marcus Thompson
