Texas volleyball coach continues training minors despite permanent SafeSport ban

Ryan Richardson, a girls’ volleyball coach in Pharr, Texas, has continued to train minor athletes for two years despite being suspended and subsequently declared “permanently ineligible” by the U.S. Center for SafeSport. The oversight body substantiated allegations that Richardson engaged in sexual misconduct with a minor, committed physical misconduct, and bullied athletes. Despite these sanctions, Richardson evaded bans by using a proxy, Gavin Rudder, to register his club, Texas Fierce Elite, with USA Volleyball and other organisations.

Investigations by ProPublica and The Washington Post reveal that Richardson used Rudder to maintain his club’s registration with USA Volleyball and the Junior Volleyball Association (JVA) while he was suspended. Although SafeSport and USA Volleyball received multiple reports of Richardson violating his suspension, regional bodies failed to enforce bans, allowing him to attend tournaments and post public videos of training sessions. Richardson was listed as permanently ineligible in February 2026 but resumed coaching immediately.

The Junior Volleyball Association renewed Richardson’s membership in July 2025, four months after his SafeSport suspension, before cancelling it in December 2025. A representative for the JVA acknowledged that the organisation had not conducted its monthly audits of the SafeSport list against its membership roster in Richardson’s case. The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is also linked to a new club brand, “The Complex,” located at Richardson’s gym, despite claiming to have banned him in November 2024.

Lone Star Region Volleyball allowed Texas Fierce Elite to remain in good standing for the 2025 season, approving Rudder’s membership despite reports of Richardson’s involvement. A senior official with USA Volleyball stated that the organisation leaves enforcement of SafeSport bans to regional affiliates like Lone Star. However, ProPublica and The Washington Post found that Lone Star had received reports from three people alleging that Richardson was violating his suspension, including videos and text messages.

SafeSport delayed suspending Richardson for months despite the serious allegations. The organisation initially declined to investigate because it said the allegations were not sexual, referring the case back to USA Volleyball. Only after a mother reached out to Lone Star in May 2024 did SafeSport accept the case. Richardson’s name appeared in the centre’s disciplinary database in February 2025, but he continued to coach at tournaments not affiliated with USA Volleyball.

A former SafeSport investigator, Jason Krasley, who handled Richardson’s case, was fired in November 2024 and later arrested on charges of felony rape and involuntary sexual servitude. Krasley is awaiting trial on multiple sex crime charges, although the theft and other charges were eventually dropped. SafeSport conducted an audit of Krasley’s 114 cases and said that it had reopened three of them, without providing details.

Richardson, who has not been charged with any crime, did not respond to multiple requests for comment for the story. Last week, after ProPublica and The Washington Post sent him a detailed summary of their reporting, Richardson posted a video of a girl training at his gym on Instagram with the caption, “Say what you want but this work will be on display for as long as I live !! Not interested in answering to the narrative created by outsiders just invested into the next one who is looking for change!!”