Bullying and racism at Oxford Brookes’ Rows Club confirmed in report

Sexual harassment, racism and bullying took place at Oxford Brookes University Foat Club, an independent investigation has confirmed.

The report was commissioned by the university after a photo of a so-called “Hardness Sheet”, allegedly criticized members of the top rowing team, circulated online in November 2024.

A summary of the findings by Pennington was strongly submitted by Coper to the University in April and shared by the BBC through a contributor to the investigation.

Oxford Brookes University said it was doing so to “lead and transform changes” and “new, progressive structures” are now in place at the club.

Heather, not her real name, rides at Oxford Brookes University Boat Club (OBUBC) and was interviewed as part of the investigation.

He said that while at the club he witnessed sexual harassment of women and that the weight of the public shaming of athletes “Prolific”.

Heather explained that she had seen the male squad ask to jump topless, and “if any of their body parts jiggled, they had to lose it”.

“I felt it was important to be a part of the investigation because I feel like a lot of athletes don’t talk about their experiences,” Heather said.

He said he also felt that Oxford “glossed over” issues around sex, racism and bullying and what they were doing to improve that. “

The independent investigation was conducted by penningtons strongly associated with penningtons, who interviewed 41 current and former athletes from Obubc.

A summary of the report was shared with the BBC by a person who contributed to the investigation and then requested the findings through a freedom of information.

Any names of any individuals within the report have been redacted.

The investigation found:

• “Many different instances” of gender discrimination and sexual harassment

• Repeated breaches of Britain’s streaming code of conduct, including rules banning coaches from having sexual relations with athletes

• Evidence of Bullying, “Personal Injuries”, and Three Incidents of “Racial Victims”

• That there were data breaches and it was suggested that the financial aspects of the club should be audited

• Breach of British weight guidelines

• That there was “repeated interference” during the investigation

The report recommended disciplinary action against some members of Obubc, appointed a welfare officer, and should have fairness, participation in training.

A spokesman for Brookes at Oxford University said: “When concerns were initially raised about coaching at Claches Boat Club, that launched the change in this report.

“Respect, inclusion and the dignity of all who study and work here are central to our culture.

“We are working across the board to address the issues raised in the report, with leadership changes and changes to the club’s progressive structures.”

The investigation began after a photo of a so-called “Hardness sheet” circulated online.

It includes comments next to rowers’ names including “put the pies”, “get a haircut” and “watch you look like watching paint dry”.

After the sheet was leaked, an anonymous WhatsApp message from a senior member of the boat club addressing the “difficulty of the sheet” was seen by the BBC.

It requires someone to “own” someone for posting a photo of it online, otherwise they can be “tracked”.

on December 2024Oxford Brookes University has announced that an investigation will look into the club’s behavior and culture.

Heather said that she felt that methods such as “hardness on the sheet” were ineffective in training athletes, and that “success and well-being should come hand in hand”.

Oxford Brookes is home to one of the UK’s premier rowing programs, with eight members of the rowing club selected to represent team GB at the Paris Olympics.

British Rowing said they were “working in partnership and supporting the Brookes of Oxford university as introduced by the recommendations of the Oxford Boat Club Club.”