KITCHENER -- A decorated Guelph running coach has been removed from the Guelph Sports Hall of Fame in a unanimous decision from its board of directors.
Dave Scott-Thomas was a track coach for the University of Guelph for many years.
In a statement, the hall of fame says in part:
"The Board of Directors reserves the right to remove an inducted member from the Guelph Sports Hall of Fame after careful review of supporting public information on actions deemed to be extraordinary undesirable or demonstrate detrimental conduct."
This is the first time in the hall of fame's history that it has stripped someone of the honour.
The University of Guelph announced in December that it had terminated its relationship with the coach after receiving information "from former and current track and field athletes regarding their experiences on the team," a statement from the university read in part at the time.
Last fall, Scott-Thomas was put on leave, accused of unprofessional conduct. Following an investigation, the university says it officially parted ways with the coach, but wouldn't say why.
Officials say during the 2019 investigation that new information came to light about a 2006 comp0laint by family member of a student-athlete. Back then, Scott-Thomas was suspended for four weeks.
Because Scott-Thomas was once a highly-acclaimed coach, Athletics Canada had made the University of Guelph and the Speed River Track and Field Club centres of excellence.
That title was stripped from both organizations in the light of the allegations.
The man's lawyer tells CTV that Scott-Thomas "requests privacy for himself, his wife and his children."
He and his lawyer both declined comment.
