Olympic taekwondo champ suspended in sexual misconduct probe

FILE – Steven Lopez, who competes in Taekwondo, poses for a portrait at the USOC Rio Olympics Shoot at Quixote Studios on November 19, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. Harry How/Getty Images/AFP

DENVER — Two-time Olympic taekwondo champion Steven Lopez has been temporarily suspended while the U.S. Center for SafeSport resolves a case against him involving sexual misconduct allegations.

Lopez’s suspension Monday comes days after four women filed a lawsuit in federal court accusing USA Taekwondo and the U.S. Olympic Committee of sex trafficking. The lawsuit alleges the organizations were long aware that Lopez and his brother were sexual predators but kept sending young women with them to competitions and practices.

Jean Lopez is appealing a pair of violations for sexual misconduct that resulted in a permanent ban; one of the cases involved a minor.

Last June, USA Today reported that two women had accused Steven Lopez of sexual assault. Lopez denied the allegations.

The U.S. Center for SafeSport opened in 2017 and is in charge of investigating sexual misconduct cases in Olympic sports.