Ireland women's soccer coach Vera Pauw says she was raped by 'prominent football official' as a player

Warning: This story may be triggering for those who have experienced​ ​​​sexual violence or know someone affected by it.

Ireland women's soccer coach Vera Pauw has said that she was raped by a "prominent football official" in 1986 and sexually assaulted by two other men when she was a player in the Netherlands.

Pauw made the claims in a report that was published Saturday in respected Dutch newspaper NRC and in a statement she posted on Twitter. The official was not identified in Pauw's statement or the NRC story.

"Even those closest to me have not known of the rape I endured at the hands of a prominent football official when I was a young player," Pauw wrote. "Later, two sexual assaults by two other men were added to this record. All three men were employed within Dutch football at the time of these incidents."

NRC wrote that the alleged rape happened at Pauw's home in 1986.

This has been the toughest thing in my life but, finally, I'm ready to move on and be proud of who I am<br><br>Vera