Jake Virtanen has stepped down as the host of the Archway Charity Golf Tournament.
Archway informed The News of the decision on Saturday (May 1) evening.
The statement provided reads:
In light of current allegations, Jake Virtanen has voluntarily stepped down as the host of the Archway Charity Golf Tournament to allow the focus to be on raising funds for community programs and services.
Archway Community Service’s mission is to foster community well-being, and social justice through positive action and leadership. As such Archway does not accept sexual misconduct of any kind and takes the allegations very seriously.
Virtanen originally attached himself to the tournament in 2019, which was the third annual tournament for ACS. The 2019 edition of the event was a success, raising $45,000 – a significant increase on the $28,000 that was collected in 2018.
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The 2020 edition of the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s event is scheduled for June 22.
Earlier today (Saturday) the Vancouver Canucks announced they had placed Virtanen on leave following allegations of sexual misconduct.
— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) May 1, 2021
The Canucks say they have “engaged external expertise” to assist in an independent investigation and Virtanen has been placed on leave as the team awaits more information.
An NHL spokesperson said Saturday that the league is aware of the serious allegations and will not comment until the results of the independent investigation are complete.
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