Canadian figure skater Nikolaj Sorensen has been suspended for a minimum of six years over ‘sexual maltreatment’ claims, the country’s Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner (OSIC) announced Wednesday.
The ban resulted from an OSIC probe into claims that the 35-year-old Sorenson sexually assaulted an American coach and former skater in Connecticut a dozen years earlier.
Despite the outstanding allegation, Sorensen and skating partner Laurence Fournier Beaudry remained active until January, when the pair withdrew from the Canadian figure skating championships.
Sorensen has denied the allegations and has not been charged.
USA Today’s Christine Brennan revealed the investigation in January, reporting at the time that a 23-year-old Sorensen held down a woman on a bed after a party near Hartford on April 12, 2012.
Canadian Olympic figure skater Nikolaj Sorensen has been suspended for at least six years
‘He pinned me down with his left arm over my collarbone,’ the woman claimed in the report made to Canada’s OSIC and the U.S. Center for SafeSport. ‘He pushed down hard on my collarbone, making me gasp for air the moment he inserted his penis into my vagina and covered his right hand over my mouth.’
She continued: ‘All sound at that point became virtually inaudible and it felt like I would suffocate under the pressure of his arm on my collarbone and chest.
‘I pushed my arms against his hips to try to get his penis out of me and I was struggling to breathe. At this point, I feared for my life and let my body go limp as I lay there and he raped me.’
The unidentified accuser is represented by Olympic gold medalist Nancy Hogshead, who is now a preeminent Title IX attorney and founder of the non-profit, Champion Women.
The OSIC previously suspended seven other athletes, five of whom were accused of sexual maltreatment.
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