Hockey Canada has paid $7.6M in sex abuse settlements since 1989
Posted July 27, 2022 9:20 am.
Last Updated July 27, 2022 11:42 am.
Hockey Canada’s chief financial officer says the governing body has paid out $7.6 million in nine settlements since 1989, with most of that being to victims of sexual abuser Graham James.
That revelation came during ongoing hearings before the House of Commons heritage committee into how the governing body handled allegations of sexual assault.
James was convicted of sexually assaulting six of his former players with the Swift Current Broncos of the Western Hockey League in the late 1980s and early ’90s.
Hockey Canada’s president is expected to appear before the committee later today.
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Hockey Canada has been under fire since news broke in May that members of the 2018 world junior team were accused of a group sexual assault after a gala event in London, Ont.
Police did not lay charges, but the woman at the centre of the allegations sued Hockey Canada, the Canadian Hockey League and several players this spring.
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Hockey Canada settled the case for an undisclosed amount and MPs on the committee are now probing how it dealt with the allegations and the lawsuit.
Scott Smith, Hockey Canada’s president and chief operating officer, and recently retired CEO Tom Renney are also testifying at the committee today.
Smith is trying to convince the committee that he can turn things around, even though he’s been with the agency in various roles for 30 years.
“I’m prepared to take on this responsibility for change within our game,” he testified. “I believe I’ve got the experience to do it. Should our board or the governance review (decide that) I’m not the person, then I’m prepared to accept that.”
On Tuesday at the committee, a senior director of Sport Canada said the federal organization was made aware of an alleged sexual assault involving members of the world team in late June 2018, but did not follow up with Hockey Canada over the next four years.
