Georgia Smash has issued a formal apology to Ryan ‘L4st’ Krichbaum after previously recommending he be banned from Smash Bros events over sexual assault allegations.

The organization previously posted a statement on May 11 claiming moderators had received multiple complaints against Krichbaum from several individuals. At the time, Georgia Smash said L4st had been accused of rape, emotional abuse, manipulation, coercion, and multiple instances of sexual assault.

L4st had been privately banned from a few tournaments in Georgia in 2024 in order to “protect” one of his accusers before Georgia Smash published its original statement.

In a new post, Georgia Smash said it received a letter on Saturday, May 23, from Jimmine Haigler, Esq. of Haigler Law Firm on behalf of Krichbaum.

According to Georgia Smash, the letter stated that the allegations provided to them were “largely unsubstantiated” and “categorically false.”

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“To Ryan ‘L4st’ Krichbaum, we apologize for any undeserved inconvenience and seek to alleviate any undue harm, professional or otherwise, that may have occurred as a result of our actions,” the statement read.

Georgia Smash also apologized to Team Liquid, Axiomatic Gaming, and Chess.com, saying it did not intend for Krichbaum to incur “undeserved, significant professional and reputational ongoing harm.”

Georgia Smash apologizes for taking L4st sexual assault allegations “at face value”

Georgia Smash said the claims brought to them were “not extensively investigated” and were taken “at face value.” However, the org also noted that after the publication of its original statement, Krichbaum “admitted to an incident in 2023 that led to him being uninvited from an event.”

Despite that, Georgia Smash said it is retracting its original statement and acknowledged “the recklessness” of publishing it with the language it used.