Penn State fencing head coach placed on administrative leave amid controversy, lawsuit
Penn State has placed fencing head coach Wes Glon on paid leave pending more information about restrictions imposed on the coach by USA Fencing.
Adam Kaszubowski is now the interim head coach. Glon was set to begin his 38th year with the Nittany Lions.
“Penn State has been informed that USA Fencing has imposed certain restrictions on fencing head coach Wes Glon,” Penn State Athletics wrote in a brief statement Wednesday evening.
Penn State fencing has been entrenched in controversy recently with former All-American fencer and graduate Zara Moss alleging in a federal lawsuit filed in April that the team was a “hotbed for sexual assault and gender discrimination.” Moss accused Glon of verbal abuse, targeting her for her weight, being dismissive of injuries and her mental well-being.
Moss reported the alleged abuse in March 2021 and wrote in the lawsuit that the university “never meaningfully investigated these reports or took corrective action.”
A lawsuit filed against Penn State, Glon and former Penn State assistant fencing coach George Abashidze by a North Carolina woman was dismissed by a federal judge in May. The woman alleged Glon and the university were negligent in handling a report that Abashidze made numerous lewd comments and sexually assaulted her during a 2017 return flight from a national fencing competition.
The woman appealed the judge’s ruling in June.
A Penn State investigation substantiated the woman’s claims against Abashidze, but found he did not violate any university policies and did not address why Glon did not disclose the allegations. Abashidze was fired in 2019 after he was suspended by USA Fencing.
Glon was placed on a three-year suspension in August 2021 by the U.S. Center for SafeSport. He was reinstated to his position in November after the suspension was lifted following a hearing before an arbitrator.
Reporter Bret Pallotto contributed to this report.
