In the end, the pressure was too great: Dirk Hordorff, Vice President of the German Tennis Association, resigned. Several athletes accuse him of sexual harassment.
Dirk Hordorff has resigned from his post as Vice President of the German Tennis Association (DTB). The 66-year-old announced this through his lawyer on Wednesday. The DTB had recently asked Hordorff to resign from his post several times after allegations of abuse. “I resigned my position as Vice President of the German Tennis Association today. I would also like to avoid damage to the DTB. I will now fully concentrate on refuting the untrue allegations on March 28, 2023 by the Frankfurt public prosecutor’s office according to § 170 paragraph 2 StPO,” the statement said.
Chief public prosecutor Nadja Niesen, spokeswoman for the Frankfurt public prosecutor’s office, confirmed the termination of the proceedings for legal reasons. “From our point of view, some of the criminal offenses have not been fulfilled or have become statute-barred,” said Niesen of the DPA.
He has already left office
On Monday, the DTB again asked Hordorff to resign, although the long-time official had rejected the allegations of sexualized violence and abuse of power as “simply untrue”. After the presidium, the ombudsman and spokesman for the federal committee also demanded that Hordoff resign from office by Wednesday.
Hordorff had left his post after serious allegations became known. NDR, “Sportschau” and “Süddeutsche Zeitung” had reported allegations by former tennis pro Maximilian Abel, among others, that there had been sexualized assaults for years.
Hordorff had denied the allegations and had his lawyer explain that there was no connection with the allegations that he was leaving his office. “Due to an operation on an aneurysm that took place at the beginning of March and an upcoming operation on an aneurysm, Mr. Hordorff is currently not in a position to hold office,” the lawyer said.
Source: Stern
I am Pierce Boyd, a driven and ambitious professional working in the news industry. I have been writing for 24 Hours Worlds for over five years, specializing in sports section coverage. During my tenure at the publication, I have built an impressive portfolio of articles that has earned me a reputation as an experienced journalist and content creator.
