Marcell Jacobs, the Olympic 100m champion, has announced his partnership with American sprint coach Rana Reider, who recently underwent an investigation following complaints of sexual misconduct. In May, Reider received a one-year probation as a result of an 18-month inquiry.
Reider’s lawyer clarified that the coach had acknowledged being in a consensual romantic relationship with an adult athlete, which had presented a power imbalance. Italian sprinter Jacobs has chosen to work with Reider as he prepares for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Regardless of his victory at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Jacobs has faced challenges with injuries since then. He stated, “Change is sometimes necessary. I will do my best, as always, to return to giving Italians the emotions they experienced at Tokyo 2020.”
Reider’s lawyer, Ryan Stevens, emphasized that his 52-year-old client had not been found in violation of any other sexual misconduct claims and had consistently denied all such allegations.
Temporary measures were imposed on Reider in November 2022, restricting his coaching activities while the investigation was ongoing. However, following the investigation’s conclusion, he is allowed to continue coaching elite-level sprinters and jumpers.
The investigation was conducted by the US Center for SafeSport, an independent American safeguarding body handling allegations of emotional, physical, and sexual abuse in Olympic and Paralympic sports. The specific details of Reider’s case were not disclosed by the organization.
Rana Reider has established himself as a top track and field coach, having coached several elite athletes, including Canada’s Olympic 200m champion Andre de Grasse and four-time triple jump world champion Christian Taylor.
While working in the UK, he also coached British athletes, including Adam Gemili and Daryll Neita. However, in 2021, UK Athletics instructed British athletes to sever ties with Reider during the investigation.
Some athletes, such as Laviai Nielsen and Adam Gemili, chose to remain with Reider and were subsequently removed from UK Athletics’ World Class Programme. Laviai Nielsen expressed feeling that UK Athletics had “blackmailed” athletes by withdrawing funding from those who didn’t part ways with Reider.
Source: BBC Sports
