Oregon Duck Female Track Athletes Faced Body Shaming: Report

BEAVERTON, OR — A new report raises questions about how female track and field athletes are treated at the University of Oregon. An article in The Oregonian quotes six athletes charging that they were subjected to body shaming.

The article reports that five of the women left the program while having remaining eligibility.

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The athletes report much of the problems stem from the school's use of high-tech screening methods to determine weight and body fat percentage.

"While knowing body composition may be helpful for some athletes, I have seen it be nothing but destructive." one of the athletes told reporter Ken Goe.

The University of Oregon track and field program is one of the most accomplished in the nation and owes much of its success to its relationship with Nike, founded by alum Phil Knight.

The university's Hayward Field, the regular host of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships and next year's World Outdoor Championships, was largely funded with donations from Knight.

Nike has been in the news because of body shaming allegations. Former star athlete Mary Cain recently filed a $20 million suit against them and the now-former director of the Nike Oregon Project, Alberto Salazar, alleging emotional abuse related to body-shaming.

The university denies that athletes were body-shamed and said it puts the heath of athletes first.