HALIFAX, Nova Scotia (AP) — The world junior hockey championship will be held in Canada the next two weeks, shadowed by Hockey Canada’s handling of explosive sexual assault allegations.
The national hockey governing body has been mired in controversy for months after it was revealed in May that it settled a lawsuit with a woman who says she was sexually assaulted by several members of the 2018 world junior team. In July, Halifax Regional Police began investigating allegations that members of the 2003 team sexually assaulted a woman and filmed the attack during that tournament.
No charges have been filed. Within the past week, police in London, Ontario, said they have grounds to believe a woman was sexually assaulted by five players on that Canadian 2018 team.
Hockey Canada executives in July also revealed that they paid out $8.9 million in sexual abuse settlements since 1989, excluding the 2018 deal. The organization elected a new board of directors Dec. 17 and is still searching for a new chief executive officer. The previous board resigned and president and CEO Scott Smith was ousted as a result of the controversies.