Japan's Olympic speedskating coach Kunio Tanaka said Thursday he will resign his position after being fired by his university over the arrests of five of his hockey students in July on suspicion of rape.Earlier in the day, Tanaka, who is director of Nippon Sport Science University's ice hockey team, was dismissed with head coach Yoshihiko Nakajima following disclosure that five team members were arrested last July in connection with the rape of a young woman in May.Tanaka and Nakajima were dismissed by the university's executive committee for failing to report the arrests to school authorities or to the college ice hockey league, according to the college. Tanaka had also been serving as head coach of the Nagano Winter Games' speedskating team.Authorities of the private university also suspended the hockey club's activities for an indefinite period, school officials said. The five students were arrested in July on suspicion of raping and assaulting the woman, it was learned this week. They include a 23-year-old senior, two freshmen and two sophomores, all four of whom were aged 18 and 19 at the time.The victim, who is in her 20s, was allegedly raped at a May 4 party. She later agreed to an out-of-court settlement. The case against the senior was dropped, and the four minors were dealt with in family court.
