The Court of Arbitration for Sport has made Steven Lopez Life Ban overturned following an appeal. Lopez is a two-time Olympic champion.
After allegations of sexual abuse, American Lopez was expelled from the sport in September 2018.
The Center for SafeSport in the United States disqualified him and his brother Jean.
However, after challenging the decision, the brothers have now had their suspensions lifted.
The brothers’ punishments were initially overturned on appeal, but World Taekwondo, the organization that oversees the sport worldwide, decided to maintain them.
The Lopez brothers attempted to appeal WT’s judgment, but were unsuccessful, and did so in June 2022.
According to a CAS panel, WT charged the brothers in accordance with its 2011 code of ethics. However, they believed this law could not be applied because the occurrences for which they were charged occurred before 2011.
The 2008 code of ethics was presented by WT for the first time during a CAS hearing, but the panel deemed it to be “inadmissibly, and impermissibly, late,” and stated that there was insufficient proof to show that this version of the code of ethics was published or made available to athletes.
“In application of the fundamental legal principle that one cannot be punished for doing something that is not prohibited by law, and in the absence of any relevant applicable disciplinary or ethics rules implemented or published by WT at the time of the alleged violations, the CAS Panel was not in a position to sanction the appellants, even if the Panel were to assume that they had committed an infraction,” the CAS said in a statement upholding the Lopez brothers’ appeal.
Steven Lopez Life Ban overturned: Lopez brothers Were Sued By Four Females in 2012
Four female taekwondo competitors sued the Lopez brothers in 2018, alleging that they had been subjected to “two decades of sexual abuse, exploitation, and trafficking by the entities, officials, coaches, and mentors who were entrusted to safeguard them.”
Every accusation made against either brother has been consistently refuted.
Lopez, 44, is a five-time world champion and won gold in the -68 kg and -80 kg weight classes in the Olympic Games in 2000 and 2004, respectively.
