Federal judge eases path for athlete's abuse lawsuit against Olympic, Paralympic committee

A federal judge agreed last month that a swimmer was an "invitee" of the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee at its Colorado Springs training facility when a fellow athlete allegedly sexually assaulted him.

Plaintiff Parker Egbert and the committee disputed whether he was an invitee or a "licensee" under Colorado law during his stay at the training center. The distinction was important for the committee's liability . On the spectrum from trespasser to licensee to invitee, a landlord has the greatest responsibility to ensure the safety of an invitee.



As a result , a licensee can only prevail if a landowner failed to reasonably act on a danger the landlord actually knew about. An invitee, by contrast, can prevail if the landowner failed to guard against dangers they knew or should have known about. In an Oct.

28 order, U.S. District Court Judge S.

Kato Crews agreed the committee invited Egbert to its training center. In rejecting the higher hurdle for Egbert, Crews noted "explicit or implicit assurances of safety" can make someone an invitee. The committee maintained "none of the evidence shows USOPC making any such assurances," but Crews strongly disagreed.

He cited federal law, which expressly charges the committee with promoting "a safe environment in sports that is free from abuse." "The Court can think of no stronger explicit assurance of safety than one codified through an act of Congress," Crews wrote, adding that it "strains credulity to believe these assurances somehow did not apply." U.

S. Magistrate Judge S. Kato Crews Egbert, who has an intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder, competed in the Tokyo Paralympic Games in 2021.

He alleged that while there, and during Egbert's subsequent stay at the training center in Colorado Springs, teammate Robert Griswold subjected him to "violent abuse and rape." Egbert filed suit in federal court, accusing Griswold of assault, battery and infliction of emotional distress. Against the committee, Egbert advanced claims of negligence, fraud, premises liability and conspiracy.

Griswold has not moved to dismiss the claims against him. His lawyers have denied the allegations and asserted other parties, including Egbert, were to blame for any injury. Griswold "looks forward to his day in Court when he can clear his name of these unfounded accusations," attorney John Chanin told The Washington Post.

Egbert, who is from South Carolina, alleged Griswold began "grooming" him in 2021 and eventually grew to control "all aspects of his life." The committee represented its training center aimed to provide a safe environment for Egbert. But even with knowledge of a prior misconduct allegation against Griswold, the committee allowed him to "train, travel, and live with" Egbert, his attorney wrote.

Crews previously narrowed some of Egbert's claims , but asked the parties to separately address whether Egbert was an invitee or licensee under Colorado law. No trial date has been scheduled. The case is Egbert v.

Griswold et al..