Education

Harvard men’s soccer player created sexually explicit ‘report’ ranking female recruits

Students walk across Harvard Yard on the Harvard University campus in Cambridge.

October 25, 2016

1 minute to read

A member of Harvard’s 2012 men’s soccer team created a fake “scouting report” that ranked freshmen recruits from the women’s soccer team individually in an explicit and sexual manner, according to The Harvard Crimson.

The nine-page report, distributed among the team over email, described each female recruit in lewd terms, assigning them numerical scores and hypothetical sexual “positions” in addition to their positions on the field, and included photographs taken from social media accounts, the Crimson reports. The report was circulated by the author on July 31, 2012.

Pieter Lehrer, head coach of the men’s team since 2013, said he was “disgusted” by the report.

“When I first heard of this report from the Crimson, I was shocked and disgusted,” Lehrer said in a statement to Boston.com. “I make it a priority to speak with my current student-athletes about the many lessons learned on and off the playing fields, and I will take this opportunity to address this document from 2012 with my current athletes. I hope their seeing how offensive and hurtful this is will be a valuable lesson for everyone involved with this program.”

Harvard athletic director Robert Scalise viewed the report Monday, according to the Crimson.

“Harvard University Athletics has zero tolerance for behavior of this kind and is deeply upset by these offensive and derogatory remarks,” he said in a statement to Boston.com. “Harvard College students, including members of our athletic teams, are required to uphold the values of this community, which are rooted in the respect and dignity for all members of our community. University Athletics continues to reinforce with our student-athletes appropriate and respectful social behavior and team conduct.”

The university has been working to address instances of sexual misconduct since March when its university-wide task force on sexual assault prevention released a report aiming to address what University President Drew Faust called a “troubling” climate on campus.

Read the full report at the Crimson.