Despite his profile, connections and success as a college coach in a state where basketball is all important, Rick Pitino’s greatest challenge may be saving his career and reputation in the midst of a salacious scandal.
Karen Sypher, the woman accused of trying to extort US$10 million from University of Louisville coach Pitino, approached him in a restaurant six years ago and they had sex, the coach told police.
She says it happened after closing time at a table.
Two weeks later, the married father of five gave Sypher US$3,000 after she said she was going to have an abortion and didn’t have health insurance, said a summary of Pitino’s July 12 statement to police. His attorney, Steve Pence, said on Wednesday that the money was to help her get medical coverage, not specifically to pay for an abortion.
“The coach believed that the money was for insurance, that’s what she said it was for and that’s the way his report reads,” Pence said.
University of Louisville president James Ramsey expressed surprise at the new details in the scandal surrounding the 56-year-old coach, whose contract includes dishonesty and moral depravity as grounds for firing.
Pitino said on Wednesday that he would continue coaching the Cardinals “as long as they will have me,” apologizing for what he called an “indiscretion.”
“I do want to say that the past seven months have been very difficult on the people I love,” Pitino said. “I am here today because I personally apologize to my family every single day. I let them down with my indiscretion six years ago and I’m sorry for that and I tell them that every day.”
He said he would “be quiet” about the extortion case, but that he was cooperating with authorities and has consistently told them, his family and friends the truth. He did not take questions.
The school president expressed disappointment in Pitino’s “errors in judgment” but pledged to move forward.
“As we try to teach our students, when you make a mistake you admit it and right it as best you can,” Ramsey said in a written statement. “Coach has done that today.”
Athletic director Tom Jurich said he was “a million percent” behind Pitino and he expects him to remain the head coach at Louisville “for a long time.”
Moving forward won’t be easy, even for the only coach to lead three different schools to the Final Four.
Though Pitino has brought star quality to his programs, he has also presented the image of a dedicated family man. His children frequent Louisville’s home games and he often speaks about his relationship with wife Joanne.
Yet his carefully crafted public image has taken a hit since the Cardinals ended their season with a loss to Michigan State in the regional finals of the NCAA tournament.
In April he acknowledged that he had contacted the FBI about a possible extortion plot against him. Sypher, 49, was then indicted on May 12 on charges of extortion and lying to federal authorities.
She has pleaded not guilty.
After she was charged, Sypher told police the sex with Pitino was not consensual, and said he also assaulted her when they met two weeks later to discuss her pregnancy. Pitino denied the rape accusation and Kentucky authorities said there wasn’t enough evidence to prosecute.
Sypher’s attorney, James Earhart, said on Wednesday that while some details have surfaced, he expected the rest to come out eventually.
He said Sypher and her family “have suffered a lot, and they continue to suffer every day as a result of this.”
In 2004, Sypher married Pitino’s equipment manager Tim Sypher, who the complaint says brought Pitino a written list of demands from his wife, including college tuition for her children, two cars, money to pay off her house and US$3,000 per month. The demands later escalated, the complaint said. Tim Sypher has not been charged.
Pence wondered why the focus seemed to be on the coach and not Sypher.
“The feeding frenzy seems to be on the coach instead of what this woman has done,” Pence said. “The coach has done nothing illegal.”
It may not matter when it comes to public opinion. His involvement, even indirectly, in an abortion could be difficult to overcome in heavily Catholic Louisville.
A sumo star was born in Japan on Sunday when 24-year-old Takerufuji became the first wrestler in 110 years to win a top-division tournament on his debut, triumphing at the 15-day Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka despite injuring his ankle on the penultimate day. Takerufuji, whose injury had left him in a wheelchair outside the ring, shoved out the higher-ranked Gonoyama at the Edion Arena Osaka to the delight of the crowd, giving him an unassailable record of 13 wins and two losses to claim the Emperor’s Cup. “I did it just through willpower. I didn’t really know what was going
The US’ Ilia Malinin on Saturday produced six scintillating quadruple jumps, including a quadruple Axel, in the men’s free skate to capture his first figure skating world title. The 19-year-old nicknamed the “Quad god,” who is the only skater to land a quadruple Axel in competition, dazzled with an array of breathtakingly executed jumps starting with his quad Axel and including a quadruple Lutz in combination with a triple flip and a quadruple toe loop in combination with a triple toe. He added an unexpected triple-triple combination at the end to earn a world-record 227.79 in the free program for a championship
Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
HSIEH MAKES QUARTERS: Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens of Belgium won in the women’s doubles and face Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Sofia Kenin of the US Top-ranked Iga Swiatek and US Open champion Coco Gauff were knocked out of the women’s singles at the Miami Open on Monday, while Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei advanced in the women’s doubles. Swiatek lost to Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-4, 6-2, hours after third seed Gauff fell in three sets to No. 23 Caroline Garcia 6-3, 1-6, 6-2. Alexandrova beat a top-ranked player for the first time and advanced to face Jessica Pegula, a 7-6 (7/1), 6-3 winner over Emma Navarro, in the quarter-finals. Alexandrova recorded her second win over Swiatek, following a 2021 victory in Melbourne. Swiatek had won their three matches since. “We played quite