ST. LOUIS, Feb. 8 (UPI) -- Jackie Joyner-Kersee's foundation has financial troubles that threaten to overshadow the ex-Olympian track and field star's charitable work, officials say.
The 46-year-old former gold medal-winner started the foundation with her coach-turned-husband Bob Kersee, 54, with the intention of helping children in her hometown.
But the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Sunday that while back in 2000 the couple raised donations to build a $6 million East St. Louis youth center bearing her name, it now can't pay its bills.
Records show the center's governing foundation entered into six-figure contracts with a company and charity controlled by the sports celebrity couple. Their company got at least $150,000 to help with fundraising but shut down a year later. And their charity got more than $450,000 to encourage giving by athletes, but never told the Internal Revenue Service how it spent the money, the newspaper reported.
The newspaper noted the contracts came at a time the couple and their companies owed hundreds of thousands of dollars in court judgments and back taxes.
For their part, the sports couple says the deals were legitimate, though Joyner-Kersee acknowledges the deals now look bad,
"To some people, perception is the reality. It is an uphill battle," she said. "This is my dream, but I also know that there are a lot of things that I take responsibility for."
