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March 11, 2014
Concussion Inc. last week received information about an incident in recent years at the famed Germantown Academy swimming program outside Philadelphia.
The story is pertinent because of the recent controversy surrounding the status of the long-time head of the program, 74-year-old Dick Shoulberg, who was put on leave by the school administration following reports of another unseemly incident, then returned as “coach emeritus” and allowed to proceed with a sort of farewell tour at Germantown , through 2014-15. See “Shoulberg supporters celebrate return but stay upset with GA,”Philadelphia Inquirer, December 19, 2013,http://articles.philly.com/2013-12-19/news/45339961_1_dick-shoulberg-usa-swimming-germantown-academy-aquatic-club.
Our new information concerns one of Shoulberg’s former assistants, Marie Labosky, who had been a top club swimmer at Germantown and then an honorable mention All-American at Notre Dame.
The Speedo company last May hired Labosky as a representative, noting that “Marie has been selling suits since she was 15 years old for her family-owned company, Personal Best Swim Shop.” The online bio, at http://speedousab2b.com/Images/SiteImages/Common/Marie%20Labosky%20Bio.pdf, also includes the line, “After graduating from Notre Dame, Marie coached at Germantown Academy for Richard Shoulberg.”
However, the Speedo bio does not say when Labosky coached at Germantown. And the former parent’s information raises questions as towhy Labosky left, when she went on to coach for the Parkland Aquatic Club in Allentown, and whether complaints to USA Swimming precipitated her departure from Parkland and coaching.
According to the detailed account of the Germantown parent, Labosky was fired there for misconduct. When we spoke by phone with Labosky today, she said she would have her lawyer contact us either later today, tomorrow, or Wednesday.
Yesterday we had asked Parkland for the dates of Labosky’s employment there. Today Labosky called and asked why we wanted to know. When we told her we wanted to ask her about an allegation of misconduct, she said she would have her lawyer get back to us.
While we wait for more on this story, below are links to some of the other items we’ve written about Shoulberg and Germantown.
P.S. 11:30 a.m. PDT. Labosky was employed at Parkland from March 16 through October 10, 2010. According to the Germantown Academy website, Labosky was on the staff there in November 2009. So some time between November 2009 and March 2010 was when she left Germantown.