Kylie McKenzie, a 25-year-old tennis player from Arizona once considered a prodigy, was award $9 million in a federal lawsuit against the United States Tennis Association, in which she claimed the organization failed to keep her safe from being sexually assaulted by her former coach, Anibal Aranda, at the USTA’s training facility in Florida in 2018, according to The Athletic.
McKenzie said she was assaulted by Aranda when she was 19 and he was 34 while on a back court at the USTA’s Orlando training center in a lawsuit filed against the organization in 2022 — which stated the USTA had failed to disclose that Aranda had assaulted one of their employees years prior.
The suit was filed after the U.S. Center for SafeSport found that it was ”more likely than not” that Aranda touched McKenzie’s vagina over her clothes and groped her under the guise of showing her a serving technique in 2018, according to The New York Times, which reviewed a copy of the final ruling at the time.
Aranda denied ever touching McKenzie inappropriately in his testimony during a SafeSport investigation — and a USTA spokesperson said they immediately acted to suspend and fire Aranda.
The coach also said he did not recall touching another USTA employee inappropriately.
That USTA employee came forward with her allegations against Aranda amid the investigation into McKenzie’s claims.
McKenzie said she suffered anxiety, panic attacks and depression as a result of the incident.
A jury on Monday awarded McKenzie, who is trying to revive her tennis career, $3 million in compensatory damages and $6 million in punitive damages — “determining there was a conscious disregard for the rights and safety of others, given in part attempts by the USTA to keep McKenzie’s case quiet,” following a week-long trial in Orlando, according to The Athletic.
“I feel validated,” McKenzie told The Athletic Monday from Florida. “It was very hard, but I feel now that it was all worth it. I hope I can be an example for other girls to speak out even when it’s hard.”
USTA spokesman Chris Widmaier said in a statement the organization would “pursue all avenues of appeal,” although it is sympathetic to what McKenzie went through.
“The court ruled that the USTA was liable because one of its employees — a non-athlete — had an obligation to report her own experience with this coach to the USTA, an incident that was unknown until after the USTA removed the coach. This sets a new and unreasonable expectation for victims, one that will deter them from coming forward in the future,” Widmaier said.
Robert Allard, an attorney for McKenzie, said the jury made clear that the USTA had failed to regulate itself.
“They don’t put athletes first,” Allard said. “There needs to be a complete change in the organization so victims are not silenced but encouraged to come forward.”
McKenzie was once ranked in the top 10 in the U.S.
If you have been sexually assaulted and live in New York, you can call 1-800-942-6906 for free and confidential crisis counseling. If you live outside the state, you can dial the 24/7 National Sexual Assault hotline at 1-800-656-4673.
