Arbitrator overturns suspension of Canadian figure skater Nikolaj Sorensen
An arbitrator has overturned Canadian figure skater Nikolaj Sorensen's suspension of at least six years for sexual maltreatment.
Skate Canada said in a statement that it has lifted its sanctions against Sorensen after receiving Thursday's decision by the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada.
The governing body suspended Sorensen in October 2024 after the Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner investigated an allegation that he sexually assaulted an American figure skating coach and former skater in Hartford, Conn., in 2012.
He appealed, and in the decision from SDRCC, arbitrator Carol Roberts ruled that the Director of Sanctions and Outcomes incorrectly concluded that OSIC had jurisdiction to investigate the allegations when deciding Sorensen's punishment.
In a copy of the decision obtained by The Canadian Press, Roberts said Sorensen did not expressly consent to be retroactively bound to the UCCMS (Universal Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport), the national abuse policy that governs conduct in Canadian sport.
Sorensen was not a Canadian citizen and was not competing for Skate Canada at the time of the alleged incident. He has also denied the allegation, which has not been tested in court.
The 35-year-old Sorensen competed for Denmark, his country of birth, before switching to Canada when former ice dance partner Laurence Fournier Beaudry, of Montreal, was unable to obtain Danish citizenship ahead of the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Fournier Beaudry announced earlier this year that she's forming a new partnership with Guillaume Cizeron that will represent France this season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 19, 2025.
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