Team Summit Statement

Through monitoring the court docket, Team Summit learned that the charges against Jared Hedges were dismissed. Team Summit was not notified of this development by the prosecuting attorney or any other party, and has no additional information at this time about the dismissal of the charges, or if they will be refiled.

Team Summit will continue to cooperate with authorities, and we continue to review our policies and procedures with governing bodies, staff, and counsel. Athlete safety is and has always been our priority, and with that in mind, we are taking this review process incredibly seriously. We are endeavoring to take all possible scenarios that may not currently be covered by the policies and procedures in place into consideration.

Team Summit will continue to abide by the U.S. Center for SafeSport’s requirements and the vetting process for all Team Summit members, staff, and coaches who have any contact with our athletes.

I wanted to update you with regard to the situation that unfolded during an out-of-state Team Summit competition last weekend. An Alpine coach was arrested and accused of sexually assaulting a minor on one of our Alpine teams.

The nature of this allegation is both shocking and horrifying, and I want to assure you Team Summit is responding with the utmost seriousness and urgency. We are cooperating fully with the investigation authorities have underway. After initially learning of the allegation, we immediately reported it to the U.S. Center for SafeSport as required by our National Governing Body, US Ski and Snowboard. The coach is no longer employed by Team Summit.

We have been in regular contact since the weekend with the family of the athlete and the other team members who were traveling to the competition. We have also made access to a professional therapist available to any of our athletes, team families, or staff members. It is important to know that we take the well-being of all our athletes incredibly seriously.

All Team Summit coaches undergo thorough background checks as a condition of their employment and complete mandatory SafeSport training before working with athletes. In addition, bi-annual background checks are performed on each coach, and they are required to participate in an annual SafeSport refresher course.

Should anyone wish to report this situation—or any other related or unrelated concern—to SafeSport, they may do so at: https://uscenterforsafesport.org/report-a-concern/

If you have questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to me directly.

Thank you,

CB Bechtel
Executive Director, Team Summit Colorado
CB@teamsummit.org