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Sugar Land Olympian suspended in sexual misconduct probe

Lopez's suspension Monday comes days after four women filed a lawsuit in federal court accusing USA Taekwondo and the U.S. Olympic Committee of sex trafficking.

DENVER (AP) - Two-time Olympic taekwondo champion Steven Lopez has been temporarily suspended while the U.S. Center for SafeSport resolves a case against him involving sexual misconduct allegations.

Lopez's suspension Monday comes days after four women filed a lawsuit in federal court accusing USA Taekwondo and the U.S. Olympic Committee of sex trafficking. The lawsuit alleges the organizations were long aware that Lopez and his brother were sexual predators but kept sending young women with them to competitions and practices.

Jean Lopez is appealing a pair of violations for sexual misconduct that resulted in a permanent ban; one of the cases involved a minor.

Last June, USA Today reported that two women had accused Steven Lopez of sexual assault. Lopez denied the allegations.

The U.S. Center for SafeSport opened in 2017 and is in charge of investigating sexual misconduct cases in Olympic sports.

Steven Lopez is taekwondo’s biggest star and the most decorated athlete in that sport, USA Today reported in a lengthy article in April.

He competed in five Olympics, winning gold medals in 2000 and 2004 and a bronze in 2008. His siblings, Mark and Diana, also competed in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Lopez grew up in Sugar Land and graduated from Kempner High School in 1997 where he was voted "most likely to succeed."

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