By Canadian Press

Director at Crewe suspended amid British sex abuse inquiry

Dec 12, 2016 | 8:30 AM

CREWE, England — One of the most respected managers in English soccer is serving a suspension amid a widening investigation into sexual abuse by youth coaches in Britain.

Dario Gradi, who was honoured by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998 for services to the game, has temporarily stepped aside as director of football at Crewe Alexandra, the fourth-tier club said Monday.

Gradi said he has been suspended by the Football Association since Nov. 25, after the first wave of accounts from former professionals regarding the ordeals they went through as youngsters. The FA announced on Nov. 27 that it was launching a review into the scandal.

The Italian-born Gradi was manager of Crewe across two spells between 1983-2011, establishing the northwest club as a centre for turning raw talent and rejects into top-flight players, mainly via its envied youth academy. He was previously an assistant coach at Chelsea.

Chelsea recently apologized to a former player who said he was sexually abused repeatedly every week by youth-team coach Eddie Heath from the age of 13 until he was 16 or 17. Heath is now dead.

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Gradi worked at Chelsea at that time. British newspaper The Independent reported last week that Gradi went to see the parents of a Chelsea youth player in 1974 regarding a sexual assault.

Crewe’s brief statement didn’t go into detail about the reasons behind Gradi’s suspension.

In his own separate statement, Gradi said he denies any wrongdoing and that he would do “everything within my power to assist all investigatory authorities.”

Crewe launched a review last month into how they dealt with child abuse allegations in the 1980s and ’90s, one of the many developments in a fast-moving and countrywide scandal.

According to figures released by the National Police Chiefs’ Council, 98 clubs spanning all levels of the game have been impacted by the scandal. A children’s charity, the NSPCC and local police forces have referred more than 600 reports to Operation Hydrant, the national co-ordination hub for child abuse allegations.

The Associated Press

by Canadian Press

Director at Crewe suspended amid British sex abuse inquiry

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