US Olympic hero Nancy Hogshead wins legal battle after volleyball coach's $250M defamation suit is dismissed

Former Olympian Nancy Hogshead-Makar warned on in the opening segment of an episode of Dr. Phil,

Three-time Team USA Olympic gold medalist women's swimmer Nancy Hogshead has won a massive legal victory for athlete safety.

A federal judge in Chicago has dismissed a $250 million lawsuit filed against Hogshead by Rick Butler, a prominent junior volleyball coach accused of sexually abusing underage players. The lawsuit was filed in December 2021 by Butler and his wife Cheryl, targeting statements Hogshead made in 2017 and 2018 regarding allegations that Butler sexually abused teenage girls that he coached in the 1980s.

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Jenna Johnson, Nancy Hogshead, Carrie Steinseifer and Dara Torres of the United States celebrate winning the women's 4x100-meter freestyle relay during the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games at Olympic Swim Stadium. (Porter Binks-USA TODAY NETWORK)

"For decades, Rick Butler has talked his way out of the consequences that should have flowed from the findings that he sexually abused his minor athletes; he could be very convincing. While substantial evidence existed that would have enabled reasonable people to conclude that Rick Butler posed a serious danger to girls, it was difficult for families and the volleyball community to accurately assess that risk. That record is now plain for all to see,"Hogshead said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

The lawsuit alleged Hogshead's statements were part of a malicious effort to ruin the couple's volleyball business. But because Butler is a public figure, the court ruled his defamation-style claims failed because he could not establish "actual malice."

The judge's decision affirms that sports organizations, advocates,