The day after longtime Cal women’s swimming and diving head coach Teri McKeever was placed on administrative leave following abuse allegations, one of her former Bears offered a different perspective than the 19 former and current swimmers who detailed a culture of bullying last week.
Catherine Breed, who competed at Cal from 2011-15 before transforming into a record-breaking open water swimmer, took to Instagram last Thursday to lend her thoughts on the latest story to shake the collegiate swimming world.
“I went back-and-forth on whether to post this or not,” the 27-year-old Breed wrote. “But in the same way those women get to share their story, I get to share mine. I get to share my story WITHOUT victim blaming or shaming and WITHOUT saying their experience is not true. As a victim of abuse in a different form I understand the trauma that can come from it. I am NOT responding to the article, I am just sharing some moments from my time at Cal.
“My story goes as follows and there’s a lot more to it than I can write in an Instagram post so this may seem vague to you. When I struggled with my mental health because of some serious life upheavals Teri connected me with a life coach and a sports psychologist. She gave me the resources I needed because she understood the pain.
“When I struggled with my nutrition and weight she never once made me feel shame or called me fat. She connected me with Kristen and our nutritionist so I could have resources to learn how to better take care of myself. She understood the struggle.
“When I had to withdraw from WUGs because of my ACL tear I had a trip around Europe planned for after the meet. I was gutted to not be able to compete nor travel. She helped me get to Europe so that I could at least have that two week trip.
“My career at Cal was one of failure. I entered as a top recruit and by my senior year I did not even make NCAA. I failed at swimming, I failed at being a top academic, I failed at being a great captain, I failed over and over again. Teri did not guilt me about it, she did not take away my scholarship. We failed successfully.
“At one of my last meets I remember telling her I wish she was harder on me. She answered with tears in her eyes “I was afraid I would break you”, she knew how much shit I was going through and she wanted to be there for me not worrying about my swimming but worrying about me as a person. She wanted me to understand people cared about me and people loved me even if the world didn’t feel like that.
“I firmly believe Teri is not a monster. For every story in the article there are stories like mine. Teri wanted us to be strong women first and love the water second. I will always be proud to have swam at Cal.”
Breed didn’t score at the NCAA Championships as an upperclassman after putting up promising showings during her freshman and sophomore seasons. As a freshman, she placed 11th in the 500 free (4:38.05) and 14th in the 200 free (1:45.45) while helping the 800 free relay team earn a runner-up finish. Breed took third place in the 800 free relay as a sophomore along with 12th in the 500 free (4:39.72), 14th in the 200 free (1:46.01), and 21st in the 1650 free (16:13.20).
Much of McKeever’s alleged abuse, which was reportedly targeted toward one to three swimmers each year, seemed to occur after Breed graduated from Cal in 2015. A Southern California News Group investigation revealed that at least six Cal women’s swimmers had contemplated suicide since 2018 due to McKeever’s verbal and emotional abuse.
While the initial report said that 19 current or former swimmers, six parents and one former member of the men’s team at Cal spoke out, the latest from The OC Register notes that the number has increased by 15 current and former swimmers, 10 additional parents, and two former employees of the Cal athletic department. They claim that McKeever regularly swore at swimmers in front of their teammates, refused to acknowledge physical illnesses, and violated privacy agreements, among other abuses.
The OC Register also says that McKeever is under investigation by the U.S. Center for SafeSport, and that USA Swimming was made aware of the allegations against McKeever in 2015. Despite that, she was named to the staff for the 2019 World Championships.
On Tuesday, Cal athletic director Jim Knowlton told parents that an independent law firm’s investigation into McKeever could take up to six months.
So Catherine Breed, you were there. You saw what Teri did to your fellow team mates. You let it just happen. Sad!
Obviously not everyone on the Cal team was abused or harrassed by Teri. It was mentioned in the original article that only 2 or 3 were picked on. Like many other coaches (some make it more apparent than others) Teri had her favorites. And it appears Breed was a McKeever favorite.
So what DID Breed see or hear of others on her team being abused or harrassed while she was swimming at Cal? She only talks about HER experience. Or did this abuse and harrassment only happen after Breed was gone?
Breed would have seen (and chosen to ignore) a lot. She was on the team and team Captain as a Junior while Cindy Tran was a senior and Abi Speers a freshman.
“I am NOT responding to the article, I am just sharing some moments from my time at Cal.”
Um, yeah yah are… pretty sure this post doesn’t happen if the Reid’s piece doesn’t come out.
McNeil is smart.
For not going to cal or for keeping her head down?
Yes
An investigation won’t look to establish whether Teri was “overall” a good or bad person. They’re going to be looking to see whether they’re satisfied any of the allegations of abusive behaviour against her are upheld. This should involve speaking to people who have had good and bad experiences with her, but ultimately unless someone can show evidence that an allegation *didn’t* happen, evidence that you did have a good experience probably won’t have that much impact on the outcome.
I don’t know Catherine Breed but she impresses me as being a solid person. She really worked through some serious struggles in college. I hope only the very best for her.
Wouldn’t it have been wonderful if Teri treated everyone this way.
It is not a surprise that Teri might be good to some swimmers, while abusive to others. It is well documented that she targeted 2-3 swimmers every year, which is not acceptable. It is hardly to believe that the others in the team didn’t see such behaviors. To post such message is definitely a defense to Teri and ignore the abuse she did. Don’t like it.
Anyone who works with other people knows that for whatever reason you’re just going to feel differently about some people than others, and it’s not and it’s not always going to be reasons you are conscious of. Your relationship with each individual will be different/unique.
This isn’t to excuse the alleged abuse, just to say that it would be much more surprising if she didn’t have positive stories.