Chip Kline Out as Head Coach of Indiana Swim Club After Sexual Harassment Complaints Surface

by Riley Overend 18

June 13th, 2024 Club, College, News, SEC

Indiana Swim Club has parted ways with head coach Chip Kline a few weeks after sexual harassment complaints surfaced during his time as an associate head coach at the University of Kentucky.

Kline has spent the last four years leading the Bloomington-based Indiana Swim Club following a seven-year stint on Kentucky’s coaching staff. Jeff LeBeau will serve as interim head coach while a search committee sets out to find Kline’s replacement.

“Moving forward, we will be reviewing the club’s coaching structure and developing the job description to better align with club mission and vision,” the club wrote in an email to members on Tuesday. “Additionally, we will be seeking volunteers to join a search and screen committee to assist with the recruitment process.”

Last month, documents obtained by the Kentucky Herald-Leader shed light on some of Kline’s issues with the Wildcats. Female Kentucky swimmers claimed that he made sexually degrading comments about their bodies, remarked on their private sexual relationships, forced a swimmer to hug him before she could pass by him in the team room, and touched a swimmer’s knee to lift her towel. One male swimmer reported that Kline said of a female teammate, “With a butt like that, she should be a good swimmer.”

Kline was suspended in 2019 and rejected for contract renewal in 2020 for violations of Kentucky’s policies on discrimination and harassment. He denied the allegations, calling them “lies” during interviews with investigators in 2019.

Indiana Swim Club was not listed on USA Swimming’s club excellence rankings when Kline took over as head coach in September of 2020. Indiana Swim Club earned bronze medal status in 2022, silver in 2023, and bronze in 2024.

About Indiana Swim Club:

ISC was originally founded in 1955 as Bloomington Swim Club by the legendary Dr. James E. “Doc” Counsilman as a competitive swimming program for children ages 5-21. Originally sponsored by Bloomington Parks and Recreation, the club became a not-for-profit organization in 1967, run by a Board of Directors consisting of parents and other interested members of the community. In 2018, Bloomington Swim Club joined with the Counsilman Center Indiana Swim Team to form the Indiana Swim Club.

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Swim Dad
11 days ago

This is good for ISC. Chip is not the right person to lead a club. Kids need good role models.

Snarky
12 days ago

After all of the Swimswam comments on past articles I was waiting for this …

Lincoln
12 days ago

ironic his pic was the old photo on SwimSwam’s “Swim Job” link

Popeye
12 days ago

So Chip got fired at ISC, after doing a good job and (apparently) zero misdeeds at the club, for allegations from Kentucky that amounted to nothing more than heresay?

Read the room
Reply to  Popeye
12 days ago

Read the comments. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. This was a pattern throughout his career.

Somer Himpson
Reply to  Popeye
12 days ago

It’s not about just what you do currently. If you’ve been a bad actor in your past…you’re responsible for that behavior too.

terraswon
12 days ago

OK, I will say it.

 “With a butt like that, she should be a good swimmer.”

Locker room talk? I have heard much much worse.
That doesn’t mean it’s OK. That’s not what I mean. What I ,mean is that we should apply punishing p*sy grabbing talk across the board.

Fmr Swimmer
Reply to  terraswon
12 days ago

kissing foreheads, demanding hugs and touching butts is more than locker room talk.

VA Steve
Reply to  terraswon
12 days ago

read the whole article.

Derp
Reply to  terraswon
12 days ago

Any middle school boys locker room is way worse than either of these . Show me a guy who says he never objectifies or says anything inappropriate about a woman and il show you a liar. Most guys just don’t act on it hopefully and just talk cheese with their buds .

Coach
Reply to  Derp
11 days ago

We should have a much higher standard for our profession than “boys middle school locker room.”

Hoos
12 days ago

This is my first comment because I generally hate this comment section, but as a former UVA swimmer who witnessed this kind of behavior on a day-to-day basis all I have to say is…finally. Nobody protected us. Do Mark B next.

Soapy
12 days ago

Chip?

Fmr Swimmer
12 days ago

You could literally copy + paste this list with the things he did and said about female swimmers at UVA. Forehead kisses, touching butts, commenting on underwear. Nearly identical. This should have been addressed long ago.

About Riley Overend

Riley is an associate editor interested in the stories taking place outside of the pool just as much as the drama between the lane lines. A 2019 graduate of Boston College, he arrived at SwimSwam in April of 2022 after three years as a sports reporter and sports editor at newspapers …

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