Fri, January 17, 2025
Olympic diver Jordan Windle permanently suspended for inappropriate sexual conduct with minors
Former American university champion who achieved the maximum amount of twelve All-America honours, and Tokyo 2020 Olympic diver Jordan Windle has been permanently suspended by the U.S. Center for SafeSport after it ruled that the accusations against him since 2021 for inappropriate sexual conduct with minors are true.
The U.S. Center for SafeSport is the American body which investigates, and sanctions abuse and misconduct in sports. SafeSport’s investigation into the accusations against Windle began in 2021. SafeSport had received several complaints accusing Windle of exchanging explicit photographs with at least one minor on the USA Diving team.
The allegations against Windle emerged prior to the start of the 2021-2022 collegiate season. Windle was temporarily suspended at that time but was permitted to participate in several competitions whilst the investigation developed.
Therefore, in November 2021, Windle competed in the Texas Diving International and won the 3-metre springboard and platform events, and he also became the 2021 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) champion on 1-meter.
This decision has drawn criticism from those like former University of Texas All-American swimmer and founder of Safe4Athletes, Katherine Starr, who argue that it was wrong and negligent that in 2021 the NCAA was not required to automatically apply the temporary suspensions issued by SafeSport or the national governing bodies, enabling Windle to continue competing and winning whilst the accusations were being investigated.
It was only once the allegations eventually became public that the University of Texas suspended Windle from all team activities and released a statement:
“We are aware of the situation with Jordan Windle and are closely monitoring it. We will fully cooperate with all parties involved in this investigation and adhere to the policies of the NCAA, the Big 12, and the University of Texas. We have removed Jordan from all team activities pending the conclusion of the process. Any further action will be determined at the end of the investigation.”
As of present, SafeSport has updated Windle’s temporary suspension to a lifetime ban. This includes a no-contact directive with the victims. Windle’s confirmed offences include inappropriate sexual conduct with minors, inappropriate conduct, and emotional misconduct.
Windle is now permanently excluded from all USA Diving-related activities, including the prohibition of participating in competitions, training, or events organised by the federation.
However, despite SafeSport’s verdict, no criminal charges have been filed against Windle.
Windle is the first USA Diving athlete to receive a lifetime ban since 2018. USA Diving currently only has nine people on its list of permanent bans. This includes William A. Bohonyi (2015), Patrick E. Fatta (2015), Donald Glass (2015), Harry Edelman (2015), Maureen Mead (2016), Candace Gottlieb (2018), Johel Ramirez (2018), Cody Max Montgomery (2018) and Jordan Windle (2024). This is much lower compared to other sports, such as USA Swimming for example.
The controversy surrounding Windle raises questions about the standards and procedures for addressing abuse and misconduct in a variety of different sports.
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