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The Athletics Canada Commissioner’s Office announced on Monday that Andy McInnis and Ken Porter of the Ottawa Lions Track and Field Club were suspended effective immediately. They are suspended from Athletics Canada, its branches and clubs until the completion of an ongoing investigation.
The Office of the Commissioner apparently received complaints of sexual harassment by McInnis, the head coach of the Lions.
Dr. Frank Fowlie, the Athletics Canada Commissioner, was appointed as the independent investigator to the complaints. McInnis is on paid administrative leave from the club. The suspension started on September 13, 2018.
According to a published Notice of Suspension, twice in 2016 complaints were brought forward against McInnis.
McInnis coached Canada’s 4×100-metre men’s relay team to gold at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. He is the head coach of the Lions, which has produced hundreds of national team members.
McInnis was inducted into Athletics Canada’s Hall of Fame in the builder’s category in 2017.
According to the statement, McInnis broke the rules of his suspension by attending a training camp in California in December 2018. The statement reads that this is in contravention to the terms of his suspension.
Porter is also suspended because as Board Chair he failed to “prevent an environment in an athlete workplace where sexual harassment was known and where a coach has violated the terms of his suspension from Athletics Canada,” reads the statement.
Porter is suspended until the investigation is complete.
Apparently, Fowlie’s decision on the matter will be released no later than June 30, 2019.
