Overview
- Aidan Romain, 18, filed a Feb. 27 civil suit in Los Angeles Superior Court against Harvard-Westlake, school officials and former teammate Lucca van der Woude.
- The complaint alleges repeated digital penetration by van der Woude, daily racial slurs and a weight-room incident described as a re-enactment of slavery.
- The filing says teammate Connor Kim participated in racial taunts and allegedly acknowledged them to school officials, who then failed to protect Romain.
- Harvard-Westlake says it disputes many claims, asserts it complied with mandatory reporting and cooperated with police, and van der Woude’s attorneys categorically deny the allegations.
- Coverage notes van der Woude’s 2024 on-campus arrest and a reported transfer to Newport Harbor High School, while Romain—now training in Barcelona—says he plans to return to the U.S. for college and Olympic goals.