# High school coach fired for allowing team to workout shirtless....



## TJames

from Athletic Business website.....

Track Coach Fired After Boys Run Shirtless 

By Michael Popke — AB Managing Editor A celebrated boys' track coach in Westwood, Mass., was fired and ordered  off school property last week for letting his runners train without wearing shirts. Tom Davis led Westwood High's 4x800-meter relay team to the New Balance Indoor Nationals less than two months ago and had his outdoor team off to a 5-0 start this season when he started hearing about complaints regarding boys going shirtless. 

According to The Westwood Press, athletic director Karl Fogel told Davis, who is in the middle of his second year at the school, that although there was no rule against runners showing some skin during practices, local residents did not want to see any.

From there, things got ugly. As the paper reports: 

According to Davis, about a week after being first informed of the potential issue, some of his runners were running shirtless, and Fogel spoke to them about wearing a shirt. Davis said he used the opportunity to e-mail Fogel and Westwood High assistant principal Sean Bevan in an attempt to resolve the issue. Fogel replied saying the issue had been discussed and that shirts were mandatory, Davis said.

Davis said on Friday [April 29], Bevan once again did not respond to a request for a meeting, and Davis said he warned the team before practice “the administration is adamant against you guys being shirtless.” He said they risked being kicked off the team if they ran shirtless.

During the course of the workout on the 75-degree day, a member of the team took off his shirt and tucked it into his shorts. Davis said that Fogel came over in his golf cart and confronted the student.

“In an attempt to get him away from this kid, I said, ‘Karl, his workout is almost over, he’s not technically running shirtless,' ” Davis said.

Davis said Fogel then began to argue heatedly with him and, after asking Fogel to back off, he was suspended. After asking him to back off once again, Davis said that Fogel fired him and ordered him off the property.

“I’m obviously in disbelief, I’ve never witnessed anything this ridiculous,” said Davis.

Westwood Public Schools superintendent John Antonucci says the local media's portrayal of the incident has been based on "no factual information" and issued the following statement: “While I cannot discuss the specifics of a confidential personnel matter, I can assure you that Friday’s decision to relieve Mr. Davis of his duties was not the result of a single incident, but rather the regrettable outcome of an on-going discussion. It is my responsibility to ensure that our employees implement programs in a way that is consistent with the overall mission of the Westwood Public Schools.” 

Westwood's track team, without Davis at the helm, lost its meet on Monday, and several parents of track team members have reportedly requested meetings with the school's administration. 

Meanwhile, runners have defended their desire to train without shirts. “Even when it’s above 60 degrees, it’s very noticeable about how much cooler you are and how much easier it is to run,” a member of Davis's team told the Press. “After a point, when your shirt is covered with sweat and just sticking to you, it’s just a bad situation. I don’t think people understand how hard we’re running out there; it’s not like we’re playing a baseball game and we’re sweating. It’s much different, and if you don’t have the experience of trying to do it yourself, you probably couldn’t understand.”


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## Bally #50

......maybe if it was the GIRLS track team. That is a bit extreme, even by Hoosier standards.


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## Sycamore Proud

Bally #44 said:


> ......maybe if it was the GIRLS track team. That is a bit extreme, even by Hoosier standards.



Extreme?  Maybe, well probably.  But in my 43 years with middle/high school teaching and athletics I've seen things like this or even more extreme.  Most of the time it falls in under the catchall of insubordination.  I should have kept a journal from day 1.  I could have written a best seller.


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## IndianaState45

If the above story is factual as reported I hope the AD has to eat his pride and hire the guy back or lose a lawsuit.....what an idiot. 10 to 1 that AD is some power hungry idiot. I hope the kids who saw the interaction hang the AD out to dry.


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## BankShot

Whew...just think what could've happened to us during "Hell Week" in '72 @ ISU, when a couple pledges were "dumped" stark naked in front of the courthouse monument (41 & Wabash) and forced to sprint to Lincoln Quad in the middle of Winter!

Boy have things changed...


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## IndianaState45

That sounds pretty funny


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## KAPat1865

BankShot said:


> Whew...just think what could've happened to us during "Hell Week" in '72 @ ISU, when a couple pledges were "dumped" stark naked in front of the courthouse monument (41 & Wabash) and forced to sprint to Lincoln Quad in the middle of Winter!
> 
> Boy have things changed...



I think it's safe to say that if students tried that again they wouldn't get away with it. None the less a GREAT story.


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## IndyTreeFan

BankShot said:


> Whew...just think what could've happened to us during "Hell Week" in '72 @ ISU, when a couple pledges were "dumped" stark naked in front of the courthouse monument (41 & Wabash) and forced to sprint to Lincoln Quad in the middle of Winter!
> 
> Boy have things changed...



How fast did you make it, Bank???  :imslow:


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## Sackalot

This is downright ignorant and pathetic!  
By this rationale all swimmers must wear shirts in the pool, no football player can ever take his pads off on the field, no soccer player can take off a shirt to change it because he has sweated through one, etc.  STUPID and ridiculous!  But downright funny....


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## BankShot

QUOTE=IndyTreeFan;93273]How fast did you make it, Bank???  :imslow:[/QUOTE]

You can't convert an LD runner to a sprinter...but I did learn the origin of the "Green Weeny" concept! The hard part was climbing over the LQ metal gate w/ snow on the ground...and no shoes, given that I couldn't access my room thru the Commons Area (after hours). Plus...w/ no key to the suite, it took about 5 min of "in the buff" door banging to raise my roomates.

It took 1/2 the Chapter about a week to convince us to remain pledges. :krazy:


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## XTreeXC

TJames said:


> ...he started hearing about complaints regarding boys going shirtless.  According to The Westwood Press, athletic director Karl Fogel told Davis, who is in the middle of his second year at the school, that although there was no rule against runners showing some skin during practices, local residents did not want to see any.



Personally, this part of the report bugs me more than what the AD did.  It really chaps my ass that *anyone *would be so petty as to complain about something so insignificant.  People  suck.


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## SycamoreStateofMind

*All of this is besides the point...*

Because running with shirt (assuming it's above like 65 degrees) is horrilbe. Running outside in the heat with a shirt on is flat out uncomfortable. Your shirt will likely be water logged and a shirt will also chafe your nipples - it's rather uncomfortable. Wearing a shirt while running is plain awful.


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## BankShot

XTreeXC said:


> Personally, this part of the report bugs me more than what the AD did.  It really chaps my ass that *anyone *would be so petty as to *complain about something so insignificant*.  People  suck.



Don't ever buy a condo...:geeza2:

You'll wear out the phrase, "Get a life!" I could tell ya stories in Florida ya wouldn't believe.


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