Longtime Cal women’s swimming and diving coach Teri McKeever was fired after an investigation into her conduct by an independent law firm found “numerous violations of university policies that prohibit race, national origin and disability discrimination” as well as “verbally abusive conduct,” athletic director Jim Knowlton announced Tuesday.
“I strongly believe this is in the best interests of our student-athletes, our swimming program and Cal Athletics as a whole,” Knowlton wrote in a letter to the team and Cal’s athletic department staff.
McKeever, 61, is the most successful female coach in U.S. swimming history. She is the only woman to serve as head coach of a men’s or women’s U.S. Olympic swim team, doing so in 2012. Over 30 seasons at Cal, she coached 26 Olympians — including Natalie Coughlin and Missy Franklin — who combined for 36 Olympic medals.
She was put on leave last May after swimmers alleged in an investigation by the Orange County Register that McKeever verbally and emotionally abused them, including pressuring some into training through injury and illness, among other forms of bullying.
The OCR also found that McKeever’s conduct had been reported to school and athletic department officials, including Knowlton, on numerous occasions since…
