Following the recent article in Triathlon Magazine Canada where Matt Sharpe shares his side of the story, things are developing. As we mentioned in our recent text, it is very risky to pass judgment when the facts are reported only from one side. Ben Wilson did contact us to apply his right of reply.
The droit de reponse law allows anyone who is referred to in a publication to demand a right of reply. Publishers cannot refuse to run a correction, although the law does not prevent them from commenting further on the claimant in the same publication.
According to Matt Sharpe, his toxic relationship with his coach made him feel compelled to continue his session after a heavy bike crash during a motor pacing session. Jonathan Hall received a 5-day suspension, and the obligation to complete two training modules including one on concussion protocols.
Hall has been the subject of several complaints on social media (attack to dignity, lack of security considering the abilities of the athlete). The accident happened in february 2020. Case submitted august 2020.
This was the first time there was a verdict against him. Since then, many have taken to social media to accuse him of other wrongdoing. It should be noted that Triathlon Canada employees are not allowed to make public comments or defend themselves against attacks if it can have adverse consequences on the athletes.
The fact that Trimes now publishes this specific communication does not mean that we endorse it. Actually, we did warn him that he could face legal consequence. His answer « I have simply given my account of events that happened, these events have been accepted by Tri Can as factual. I have time stamps of the documents written at the time that show they were written up after the incident. Given the seriousness of the allegations, I feel that it is important that the true version of events is available. » With the droit de réponse, we only let him use its rights.
In the past, Trimes had published a « droit de réponse » from somenone who did sue us. This is just the law and we respect it.
Ben Wilson was never consulted by Safe Sport during the time of the investigation.
We have seen several memos and communication about the accident that do not reflect the story that was submitted to the Safe Sport case.
Please understand that we have some difficulties to manage this situation. We need to work on solutions because even with or without that case, the relationship between a system and his athletes has to be rebuilt around more inclusive objectives.
With reference to the recent articles regarding a complaint made by Matthew Sharpe, it appears that there is some confusion around the circumstances of the accident he was involved in whilst motor pacing.
As the coach involved in this incident, I feel that it is important you are aware of the facts, even though it is after any hearing where to be honest, it is a great surprise and concern that my statement of facts was not asked for. How is it that Triathlon Canada can have a hearing and make a decision without being aware of the full facts?
Firstly, the article describes me as ‘an inexperienced coach.’ I have been coaching road cycling for many years and have taken many motor pacing sessions, this is the first incident where riders have ridden into the back of the motorbike. I have managed groups of riders on al terrains, from the flat roads of Flanders to the high Alpes, all without incident. I regularly train elite and amateur riders, again without incident. Rider safety is my number one priority when I am with a group and this unsubstantiated allegation is defamatory.
As far as I am aware, Matthew Sharpe has been involved in upwards of 8 crashes since 2017. To try to pin the blame on me and describe me as inexperienced is as far as I can tell, an attempt to shift the blame away from a rider who has ridden into the back of a motorbike. The GPS data from the time of the accident showed that the bike was travelling at a constant speed and did not brake. This allegation needs to be corrected, it is not only false but also seems to be an attempt to undermine Jono Halls judgement.
I would like to take this opportunity to furnish you with the full facts of the inicident and let you know that should Triathlon Canada feel the need to pursue this matter legally, I am happy to make a more formal statement.
The article in Triathlon Magazine contains various errors and outright falsehoods;
Matthew Sharpe, Alexis Lepage and Karsten Madsen were the 3 riders participating in the session, it was not 2 as the article suggests.
After an unfortunate touch of wheels at the beginning of the session, all 3 riders fell off.
I stopped the motorbike as quickly as was safe to do so and returned to the site of the crash.
All 3 riders were mobile and conscious. Upon initial assessment, Alexis Lepage was the most mobile and least hurt, Matthew Sharpe was next – he was able to move and was conscious, one foot was still in the pedal – I unclipped this so he could sit., Karsten Madsen was in some pain and was moving on his feet – my observation at the time was that he was shocked but not ‘in shock’.
Once I had ascertained that there were no visible serious injuries that would require immediate emergency medical attention (ie an ambulance). I telephoned Jono Hall to advise him of the situation. His first thoughts were of the athletes well being and said he would come to the scene immediately.
I asked each rider if they had any head injuries / aches / blurred vision – each answered to the negative. Neither rider reported experiencing any serious pain outside of some lost skin. I said that they should all try to move slowly – pedal slowly up and down the road, remaining in sight to prevent them from getting stiff while we awaited the van.
The suggestion in the article that they were told to continue the workout is false – the motorbike itself developed a mechanical problem and did not start until approx 6pm that evening – after a mechanic had been sent out to fix or replace it. All 3 riders slowly ride towards the end of the road where I had said they should turn round and ride back.
This was the last I saw of Matthew Sharpe and Karsten Madsen. Alexis Lepage returned and said that Sharpe had decided to ride on, and Karsen had stayed with him. The motorbike was not working so I was unable to go and see what he was doing or where he was. Sharpe was unaware that the motorbike wasn’t working – as is apparent by his claim that he was told to finish the session, this would have been impossible. I immediately telephoned Jono Hall and advised him of this development.
He called Sharpe repeatedly and did not get any answer. As the light had started to fade, and he was not displaying any long term problems from the crash, I sent Alexis Lapage back – he was happy to do so.
At this moment in time, neither Jono Hall nor myself had any idea where Matthew Sharpe was. I remained with the disabled motorbike until a mechanic could get to me to get it back on the road. Jono Hall searched for Matthew Sharpe who I now know had called a non Triathlon Canada Athlete to get a lift back with her.
Prior to and after this incident, it was clear to me that Matthew Sharpe was an athlete of some ability and talent but was one who behaved as if the rules and structure of the team did not apply to him. He was consistently late to sessions and would turn up without the right equipment.
The quality of the rest of the teams sessions was constantly compromised by him.
I have seen this behaviour in the past where in order to try to prove a point, an athlete will constantly do a series of micro-aggressions, actions that taken in isolation are very small but when happening constantly, will undermine the management team and cause problems within the greater team unit.
My feedback at the time was that he was a talented athlete who thought he was too good for the system he was involved in. At no time did I see Jono Hall be anything but professional and fair in his dealing with all of his athletes.
I am not aware if the full details of Matthew Sharpes complaints but in my view, based on my time with the team, it was very clear that he thought that the rules and processes that enable a successful team to function did not apply to him and he would go out of his way to demonstrate this to the rest of the team.
The other team members could see this and their behaviour would visibly change in the presence of Sharpe. It is interesting that the Triathlon Magazine article continues to say that ’Sharpe would continue to play an important Domestique role for Canadian medal hopeful Tyler Mislawchuck…’ when the timing of his complain could not have been better were his wish to derail Canadas medal hopes.
The fact that the hearing took place, didn’t speak to all witnesses and eventually sanctioned the coach could easily be one of the biggest acts of self-sabotage a national federation has done to itself prior to a major championships. The stress of the situation undoubtably cost Tyler Mislawchuck dearly both physically and mentally.
I hope that the above sheds some light on the matter, it is very concerning that the allegations made regarding the motor-pacing incident have been accepted blindly without any validation, especially now that they are in print and available on-line.
Allegations such as those that it was demanded that the athletes finish the session are extremely serious with the fall-out being potentially career ending. Due process at the time of the hearing would have brought the truth of the incident to light before these allegations were deemed true and made to print. My electronic notes about the incident and rider reports are available and are all time stamped showing that they were made at the time of the incident.