Back to the Olympics Newsfeed

As Shaun White cements legacy, why so little attention paid to sexual harassment allegations?

GANGNEUNG, South Korea — Shaun White is an American cultural institution, winning the third Olympic gold medal of his pioneering career Wednesday at the 2018 Winter Olympics.

But while we glorify him as an all-American athlete, consider this:

In August 2016, Lena Zawaideh, the drummer in his band Bad Things, filed an amended complaint to a civil suit in San Diego alleging White had sexually harassed her, sending “sexually explicit and graphic images" to her, text messages White later admitted to sending.

In February 2017, White requested that the San Diego Superior Court require Zawaideh to undergo a mental health evaluation, but three months later, White and Zawaideh reached an undisclosed settlement.