Off the back of the releases of Netflix gymnastics documentary 'Athlete A' and the ESPN podcast series 'Heavy Medals', a multitude of current and former elite international gymnasts have started speaking out about verbally and physically abusive treatment experienced in their gyms.
After horrifying revelations involving gymnastics training centres in the United States came to light and reverberated around the world, the spotlight next fell on British Gymnastics. Numerous celebrated Olympic,World and European medallists from Team GB's ranks have spoken publicly on social and traditional media outlets about their negative experiences. Among the many harrowing stories shared, the most striking accounts came from former elites Catherine Lyons and Amy Tinkler who spoke of competing on serious injuries, forced isolation and emotional gaslighting leading to premature retirement from the sport. 2000 Olympian Lisa Mason was also very vocal for the cause.
The hashtag gaining traction each day has been #GymnastAlliance
As one of the most popular youth sports in the country, it was only a matter of time before the movement reached Australia. Over the weekend, several former gymnasts from our senior elite national program found the courage to tell their stories, and it is believed many more are due to come. On social media they are pledging support for eachother and for a shift to safer, smarter, more transparent coaching in a modern age. The movement even has its own hashtag - #gymnastallianceAUS
For the record, this blog did not start the hashtag. It has no employment, direct affiliation or representation whatsoever with Gymnastics Australia or its state associations. This blog has previously been given media accreditation issued by GA at the national championships.
I am not a parent, family member or coach of a gymnast. I am just a longtime fan and observer. I speak on nobody's behalf but my own, unless requested to do so.
I stand with every single male or female gymsport athlete who has dealt with difficult, dangerous circumstances and I firmly believe that every training environment should be a safe and transparent one. I stand with #GymnastAlliance and #GymnastAllianceAUS
I have created this post to centralise any statements and media coverage available online and I will do my best to update it on a regular basis. (Some statements may be over several posts)
I have created this post to centralise any statements and media coverage available online and I will do my best to update it on a regular basis. (Some statements may be over several posts)
Content Trigger Warning: Mentions of verbal abuse/harrassment of children, eating disorders, bodily injury, attempted suicide
* * * * * * *
Mary-Anne Monckton, 2014 Commonwealth Games silver medallist and World Cup medallist
"I don't want future gymnasts to have to go through the same things we did. However, this insidious culture won't go away overnight..."
Alex Eade, Commonwealth Games gold medallist & World Championship team member
"I was scared to vocalise how much pain I was in [...] I am coming forward because I want change."
Rianna Mizzen, Commonwealth Games medallist & World Cup medallist
Rianna Mizzen, Commonwealth Games medallist & World Cup medallist
Jade Sharp (nee Davidson), 1996 Olympic hopeful turned coach
Chloe Gilliland (nee Sims), 2006 Commonwealth Games gold medallist and World Championship team member
"I still feel horribly about almost all parts of my gymnastics career... I felt it was easier to end my own life than give in to what they wanted me to be."
Olivia Vivian, 2008 Olympian and NCAA Medallist (Oregon State University)
"After reaching my goal and representing my country at the highest level of competition I was a broken athlete and even worse, a broken person. [Competing at OSU] opened my eyes to how this sport should be experienced. OSU turned me back into that girl who couldn't wait to go to gym."
Georgia Bonora, 2008 and 2012 Olympic team member
"I have had some terrible experiences at major international competitions and national training camps between 2006 - 2012 that I wouldn't wish on anyone... there was a culture of fear created by people in power."
Britt Greeley, 2008 Pacific Rim Championship and 2009 Youth Olympic Fest team member
"Competing on a broken foot at age 12 and being told you were just homesick... training/competing on a broken back and being forced to keep going. Having no support from the coaches who were once your biggest fan, just to throw you down in the gutter... #JustToListAFew #GymnastAllianceAus"
Eden Tarvit, 2011-2014 National vault medallist
"[Athlete A] has brought to our attention some issues within the sport that we may not have noticed at the time. However now is the time for change, to raise awareness and to help protect our younger generation of athletes. The culture in gymnastics is based on fear. We feared our coaches and authority figures. We were not allowed to cry in the gym or show any emotion. We were treated like adults when we were kids, and in the end, we weren't treated like people at all."
Desnee Richter, 2015 Australian National medallist and Olympic hopeful
"The negative memories seem to cloud the positive... from being yelled at and belittled to the point of tears, being forced to wear sweat suits in summer for weight loss as a teen, to being told I was throwing medals away when I sustained an injury needing surgery..."
Shar-Lee Clark, Australian National medallist
"My coach caught me eating [a muesli bar] and made me throw them out in front of the entire team. I will never forget the humiliation of this."
Olivia Brown, Australian National medallist (via Instagram)
"It was the little things that stay burned into your mind years and years after finishing the sport. It was the, your hair needs to be shorter, you need to look a certain way (body type) and act a certain way."
Shannon Neate, Australian National medallist
"I'd like to include some direct quotes said to myself and my teammates while we were training as elite gymnasts:
- You're a disappointment
- Your parents are wasting their money paying for your training.
- You're not injured, don't lie
- Go back to levels gymnastics
- You're an adult and you will be treated like one (I was 15)."
Emily Little, 2012 Olympian and World Cup medallist
"I grew up in an elite system and was mistreated at times. However we can change things for the better... I love this sport, I have gained so much from it, but we can do better."
Luke Wadsworth (men's artistic gymnast), national medallist and World Championship competitor
"My experience with gymnastics was 90% amazing, it's still my favourite sport... however, I heard and saw things looking back that were 100% not ok and being a teenager or young adult it's hard to know what to do when these people are who you look up to, who you have to impress to make teams..."
Kent Pieterse (men's artistic gymnast), Commonwealth Games medallist and national medallist
I recently interviewed Kent about his experiences of racism in the gym and he offered his support yesterday on Twitter to all those speaking out on social media.
Jazmine Casis, National medallist
"I stuck around because I believed that I needed this coach/treated this way to achieve my dreams... When it came to nationals I was not prepared and landed a tumble and my ankle went... I ended up having 2 surgeries and never being able to train at full capacity again. We took this further up in the organisation but was told there was nothing that could be done about it."
Yasmin Collier, National medallist and Pacific Rim Championships competitor (via instagram)
[Our coaches] left five 12 year olds defenceless in an airport. We remember being so scared and remember making suitcase barricades to keep the 'weird men' away."
Paige James, National medallist, Youth Olympic festival competitor and first Indigenous Australian gymnast to make a national team
"There were so any times when the type of adversity we had to overcome was unnecessary...Training camps and travel was a major source of anxiety. I'd get a stomach ache before and after every meal for fear of being caught eating too much."
Amelia McGrath, National medallist and Pacific Rim Championships medallist
"All the highs come with tremendous lows, in and out of the gym: Anxiety, obsessive tendencies, depression to the point that mum used to help me shower because I couldn't do it myself. Waking up every morning to feelings of fear and dread. Disordered eating, tremendous and frankly unusual amounts of stress, being weighed every Monday morning from the age of ELEVEN."
Livia Giles (Gluchowska), Former Polish-Australian rhythmic gymnast turned physiotherapist and competitive wrestler.
"It makes me shake in rage at how anyone allowed it to happen in the first place. Deprived of food at training camps, not only in Poland but at the AIS in Australia... the Aussie swim team would sneak us food between room inspections."
Trinity De Lance Au-Yong, National club gymnast
"Watching all my role models I grew up with coming out and sharing their stories has made me feel like I could come out and share my story too. The toxicity I experienced in gymnastics from the age of 6 to 10 has played a big role in my life... my mom reported it multiple times about all [that] was done and got yelled at, and told it was my fault."
Sophie Stuart, State Championship medallist and state squad member
"I was belittled constantly and told I was never good enough... at my first junior Aus team camp I was yelled at endlessly because I was unable to do a difficult skill. I was told that I was an embarrassment and that I ruined the camp for everyone, never to be invited back. Hopefully sharing my story will help others create a positive impact..."
Isobel Looker, State Championship medallist and state squad member
"When I was a gymnast, I used to tell my mates that I would 'never put my kids into gymnastics' because of the trauma it would inflict on them. I laughed at the time but I didn't realise the seriousness of this statement... we need CHANGE."
Ebonie Boucher, state and national medallist
Luke Wadsworth (men's artistic gymnast), national medallist and World Championship competitor
"My experience with gymnastics was 90% amazing, it's still my favourite sport... however, I heard and saw things looking back that were 100% not ok and being a teenager or young adult it's hard to know what to do when these people are who you look up to, who you have to impress to make teams..."
Kent Pieterse (men's artistic gymnast), Commonwealth Games medallist and national medallist
I recently interviewed Kent about his experiences of racism in the gym and he offered his support yesterday on Twitter to all those speaking out on social media.
Jazmine Casis, National medallist
Yasmin Collier, National medallist and Pacific Rim Championships competitor (via instagram)
[Our coaches] left five 12 year olds defenceless in an airport. We remember being so scared and remember making suitcase barricades to keep the 'weird men' away."
Paige James, National medallist, Youth Olympic festival competitor and first Indigenous Australian gymnast to make a national team
"I was 14 at another gymnastics camp at AIS and I was struggling to perform a skill. Instead of words of motivation, support and encouragement, I was publicly shamed by being screamed at that I was a pathetic excuse of a person, I was a disgrace to gymnastics, a disgrace to my family and I was a disgrace to the whole Aboriginal community."
Aya Meggs, National medallist and Nadia Comaneci Invitational team member
"There were so any times when the type of adversity we had to overcome was unnecessary...Training camps and travel was a major source of anxiety. I'd get a stomach ache before and after every meal for fear of being caught eating too much."
Amelia McGrath, National medallist and Pacific Rim Championships medallist
"All the highs come with tremendous lows, in and out of the gym: Anxiety, obsessive tendencies, depression to the point that mum used to help me shower because I couldn't do it myself. Waking up every morning to feelings of fear and dread. Disordered eating, tremendous and frankly unusual amounts of stress, being weighed every Monday morning from the age of ELEVEN."
Livia Giles (Gluchowska), Former Polish-Australian rhythmic gymnast turned physiotherapist and competitive wrestler.
"It makes me shake in rage at how anyone allowed it to happen in the first place. Deprived of food at training camps, not only in Poland but at the AIS in Australia... the Aussie swim team would sneak us food between room inspections."
Trinity De Lance Au-Yong, National club gymnast
"Watching all my role models I grew up with coming out and sharing their stories has made me feel like I could come out and share my story too. The toxicity I experienced in gymnastics from the age of 6 to 10 has played a big role in my life... my mom reported it multiple times about all [that] was done and got yelled at, and told it was my fault."
Sophie Stuart, State Championship medallist and state squad member
"I was belittled constantly and told I was never good enough... at my first junior Aus team camp I was yelled at endlessly because I was unable to do a difficult skill. I was told that I was an embarrassment and that I ruined the camp for everyone, never to be invited back. Hopefully sharing my story will help others create a positive impact..."
Isobel Looker, State Championship medallist and state squad member
"When I was a gymnast, I used to tell my mates that I would 'never put my kids into gymnastics' because of the trauma it would inflict on them. I laughed at the time but I didn't realise the seriousness of this statement... we need CHANGE."
Ebonie Boucher, state and national medallist
"At face value gymnastics seems like this sport filled with flips, tricks and fancy leotards, but behind closed doors it's a whole different world. We were living in constant fear of not performing a skill correctly or meeting the coach's standards, continually being fat-shamed and never being able to shed a tear no matter the circumstances as "Olympians don't cry"... I wonder if the ever coaches knew how many tears were shed by their gymnasts in their home!"
Carrie Freestone, former state-level gymnast turned crossfit athlete
"Me. This is my struggle. I hurt my elbow training on vault. My coach insinuated it was nothing. Told my parents it was nothing... This is not just an 'elite' problem. This treatment is not just reserved for Olympic hopefuls. This happened in a suburban Brisbane gym with other Regional, State and National level gymnasts."
Eadie Rawson, state and national medallist (via Instagram)
"From an extremely young age, we were placed in an environment where we were publicly shamed, and embarrassed in front of peers and superiors. These and many other outdated ideologies, and coaching methods continue throughout any athlete's career, which has lasting effects long after stepping out of the gym... this needs to stop now to protect the young gymnasts in these environments today."
Some things I witnessed over the years as a fan:
* 2004 Olympics: After a fall on her beam dismount during the preliminary round of competition, Lisa Skinner was loudly admonished on camera by national coach Peggy Liddick, "You did that 4 years ago!" after dismounting the podium. Video of this incident is no longer available at Youtube as it cuts off early but I captured it on VHS during the broadcast
2008 Courier Mail article: "Broken Bodies are Tragedy of Beijing Olympics"
"Something must be going wrong – everyone is getting injured, everyone is retiring," Arrowsmith said."All the people I trained with, all the people I competed against – it's like the lost generation, we were one of the best groups."
* I was once sent a screengrab of a former senior gymnast's claim on social media that they and their teammates were encouraged by the coaches and chaperones at an international competition to avoid eating any pasta or bread during the trip. I have not reached out to this individual and as far as I'm aware they have not made a #gymnastalliance statement
The Australian Gymnastics Blog recognises that in recent years Gymnastics Australia and its state associations have affirmed their commitment to SafeSport, among other safety and wellbeing programs. But it is my opinion that this absolutely does not undo or rectify any past poor treatment of gymnasts and inappropriate comments to the media.
The Age (and its Fairfax sister papers around the country) has published
Gymnastics Australia CEO Kitty Chiller has issued
I still maintain there are many more stories to come out and I will update them where I can with the permission of the athletes involved.This is not over after just one statement to media.
As always, I stand with every athlete in our gymnastics disciplines and send them my best wishes at a challenging time for the sport. We see you, we value you, we support you.
2008 Courier Mail article: "Broken Bodies are Tragedy of Beijing Olympics"
"Something must be going wrong – everyone is getting injured, everyone is retiring," Arrowsmith said."All the people I trained with, all the people I competed against – it's like the lost generation, we were one of the best groups."
* I was once sent a screengrab of a former senior gymnast's claim on social media that they and their teammates were encouraged by the coaches and chaperones at an international competition to avoid eating any pasta or bread during the trip. I have not reached out to this individual and as far as I'm aware they have not made a #gymnastalliance statement
The Australian Gymnastics Blog recognises that in recent years Gymnastics Australia and its state associations have affirmed their commitment to SafeSport, among other safety and wellbeing programs. But it is my opinion that this absolutely does not undo or rectify any past poor treatment of gymnasts and inappropriate comments to the media.
*** UPDATE WEDNESDAY JULY 22ND ***
The Age (and its Fairfax sister papers around the country) has published
Gymnastics Australia CEO Kitty Chiller has issued
I still maintain there are many more stories to come out and I will update them where I can with the permission of the athletes involved.This is not over after just one statement to media.
As always, I stand with every athlete in our gymnastics disciplines and send them my best wishes at a challenging time for the sport. We see you, we value you, we support you.
13 comments:
The amount of emotional abuse my child suffered during her gymnastics career as an elite gymnast who represented Australia is unbelievable. It’s a toxic environment and as a parent you are too scared to speak out as you know it will result in even more abuse to your child who desperately wants to achieve in this sport. Being reduced to tears is almost a daily occurrence, they try to hide it from you as a parent as they are frightened that you will confront the coach, who will make it even worse for the gymnast. Not being believed that You have an injury is another common complaint, being screamed at is ‘normal’, being told you are useless is ‘normal’ being told you are overweight is ‘normal’ being told you are not tying is ‘normal’
As an elite gymnast in my past, I can vouch for all of the above. It was very hard on the families too. It is a disgrace how we were coached. The abuse that I received has impacted me for life. I am saddened to hear not much has changed.
This kind of behaviour happens also at a club level, where kids are signalled out for not being able to do skills that are 1-2 levels above their current level. If you don't participate in away trips that cost in excess of $1000 per child you child is punished and not selected for other teams.
My daughter would cry in the car on the way home from practice 90% of the time with feelings of inadequacy and being bullied by her coach. When she decied to take a less competitive path and reduce her hours from 18 as an 11 year old to 12 she was told she would never ammount to anything in gymnastics or anything else.
There needs to be change at all levels of this sport.
As a parent of an elite rhythmic gymnast that represented Australia for several years , I know that the environment is toxic and the treatment of my daughter by her coach was disgusting. You are
Scared as a parent and scared as a gymnast to speak up against it. You knew
It was better to just keep quiet as absolutely nothing would change and it would only make it worse for your child. Your only option was to remove your child from the sport that she loved and was good at. These kids are being abused at such a vulnerable stage of their lives, they are mostly teenagers who are navigating the difficult teenage years along with jugging School and training. When I would tell family and friends how she was treated daily, they were shocked. It is just how it is and your only option was to leave as you would never ever to able to change it. Athlete A resonated with us both and brought back many unpleasant memories.......I still have a lot of guilt as a parent that I allowed it to continue for years and years. RG is the poor cousin of artistic, as There is no national set up, so you are stuck with one coach. There are limited options to move to a different coach as there are so few elite coaches/clubs in Australia. You just absorb the mistreatment and abuse day after day. The gymnast begs you not to do anything about it as they know it will just get worse if you do.
If Gymnastics Australian are serious about Changing things, they need to speak to the parents and gymnasts of gymnasts now Retired as I still think current gymnasts and current parents will be too scared to speak out and tell them exactly what goes on. The sports psychologists know what goes on but are powerless to do anything about it. They just Try and give the gymnast tools to be able to mange their anxiety and mistreatment. So
Many former elite gymnasts that are now adults know how wrong it all was and how it had affected them.
Mez,
When all other avenues were closed by those in control, you opened a window. Peer in… if only for a moment. You probably see what I see. I see a young human blanketed by tissues after a night of endless crying in the dark. I see a vulnerability in her eyes that repeatedly said “please don’t speak up for me.. It’s worse when you do” I see a young body battered and bruised, sliced open and broken. I see torn ligaments, fractures, blistered hands and feet. I see an athlete fatigued to the point of exhaustion after hours of training per week all the while, trying to maintain a critical balance with social and school life. I see someone who no longer sees her own fabulous worth. For what?
We never sent a letter condemning the serious failings and breaches of our gym to either the club or GA. Why? Look at the endless submissions of ‘anonymous’ comments here. We know accounts of serious misconduct of coaches and the subsequent hushing by GA. Everyone knows everyone. There is no escaping the persecution at the hands of those at the top. So we remained silent… until you opened that window.
Who’s responsible? We are collectively responsible and yet there are nothing but failures….
Coaches are 100% responsible for silencing the voices of their athletes, for not holding their colleagues to account, for not adhering to the codes of conduct and ethics set by GA. Coaches are responsible for blaming gymnasts’ absences, for shaming gymnasts for not having the ‘right body type’ for success and for not modifying their coaching to suit the individual needs of the child. Screaming and blaming is the antithesis of progressive teaching techniques.
Clubs are 100% responsible for protecting the welfare of these extremely vulnerable young people. Clubs are responsible for upskilling their staff to modernise coaching techniques. They are also responsible for REMOVING coaches who seriously breach any code. Clubs are responsible for repercussions when failing to listen to the concerns of parents.
Gymnastics Australia is 100% responsible for not providing adequate support and programs to aid the transition of competitive gymnasts into retirement. These gymnasts are simply put out to pasture. GA is 100% responsible for not providing nutritional and psychological support to those in elite squads.
Our responsibility as parents was to pay our fees, buy equipment, take them to specialist appointments and support our kids. The rest was up to you. You failed them. You were meant to embrace, teach, nurture, protect and support. You did none of these well. ***The only stakeholders that successfully achieved any of these things were the GYMNASTS themselves*** They were each others’ only advocates. When the adults barked, the gymnasts’ grips around each other became tighter. These young people will no longer be silenced by your inadequate response and flagrant inaction. Where was your voice for the voiceless? Where was your action for others’ inaction?
You are all complicit and as justice is inevitably served, we hold our collective breath as you balance precariously on the beam …... chalk up.
It makes me sick that abuse in gymnastics continues. My experience as a gymnast who made the Victorian state team 3 years running over 30 years ago was 3.5 years of emotional abuse from 1 coach. Nothing seems to have changed. These coaches have never been held accountable for their conduct which makes Gymnastics Australia and all state associations complicit.
ELITE Rhythmic gymnastics is even worse than artistic as the gymnast only has one coach, no support from GA as it’s such a minor sport. No support from state association either. Everyone knows everyone. They say all the right things like they do and will support any complaint. Complete rubbish. The treatment of the gymnast by the coach (who usually owns the club as well) Is appalling . There is no other club/coach to move to as there are so few clubs. Not many girls stay in the sport, many of the younger girls are too afraid to go to a higher level as they see the older girls being reduced to tears and yelled at on a daily basis. It’s a beautiful sport to watch but absolutely AWFUL to be involved in as either a gymnast or as a parent. When we first started it was fine as it was all a bit of good fun and good exercise, we saw the unhappy older girls but just thought it was the girls themselves as the coach labeled them as ‘pincesses’ or ‘difficult to coach’ girls..............boy, did we soon find out the truth. There was nothing wrong with these teenage girls, the problem was the Way the coach treated Them. They are never coached as individuals, told constantly they are not trying...........as if the girls will purposely try and mess up her routine!!!!!! These girls come straight from a full day at school, then go in to 3-4 hours of training, then tackle homework and repeat it day after day. They have medical,appointments, psych appointments, extra training etc etc to fit in around all this as well. They sacrifice everything to just go into the gym day after day and god help them if they are possibly upset because they just failed a test at school or have a huge assignment that is due and very little time to complete it in. It’s still happening today..........and imo will never change. You either accept it or leave.........most leave. It’s a horrible and toxic environment. The amount of injuries that occur is really high as the training methods are outdated and just repetitive. So many of these girls still have medical problems That are directly related to the injuries that occurred during their gymnastics career. The only way people will feel comfortable telling GA exactly what actually goes on in this gym is if it remains confidential. I don’t believe things will change though.
These incidents are created by a culture. A culture that is scary and obvious to many who are close. Coaches in other sports and related disciplines have always said how they don't like the style of gymnastics coaching, or the feel of gymnastics clubs.
Kids line up like soldiers. They are never taught how to be healthier and how to perform better; instead, they are told how to look better: point you toes, lose weight, do your hair tighter
It is obvious this culture exists in WAG, MAG and RG, but the culture does not exist in all the gymsports. It is clear that GA is unable to support the needs of its members. And even more obvious they don't care.
At GA increased funding doesn't mean increased athlete support, it means increased staff - shows who they care for.
The bottom line is that sport is brilliant and wonderful and it can be taught well (see many other sports and even other gymsports... TRP?). Treat athletes like people, change the culture, change the experience.
To everyone commenting here - Hi, I see you, I value you.
If you are a parent or gymnast sharing your story - The same goes for you. Thank you. We hope that you find healing soon.
The sadness and anger on this issue is palpable, and very valid. The response has been amazing, no doubt these young women and men appreciate the vocal support. I hope this is the beginning of serious change, and of course it saddens me that so many people had to throw open extremely painful, harrowing chapters of their lives to kickstart it happening. I'm angrier that GA co-opted their solidarity hashtag for their email address about the very issue, that's pretty bloody galling. But regardless, the athletes' bravery and their permission to share the stories is a huge deal, I'm so grateful they took these steps.
( But as I say, I did take the direct links down to ease the traffic of total strangers suddenly hitting up their social media accounts after reading the news.)
Every story, every experience matters and I hope GA are truly listening now. This goes beyond one CEO statement.
I have been trying to catch up on all these comments in between emails as I just wrapped up a short course. So thanks again everybody and please look out for each other.
A reminder that if you have become aware of serious harm taking place within a gym context, please be sure to contact relevant authorities immediately.
Be well,
Meredith
My son was asked to trial for the elite stream at his local club after doing gymnastics for less than one term. I flat out said no - he enjoys gymnastics and I think it is fabulous for his strength and core but I have no interest in a six year old training three times a week for an hour and a half a session. I don't feel guilty or denying him an opportunity and I will always encourage his participation but nothing more. GA need to defund the HP element and focus on participation - Gymnastics is such a great base skill to carry on to so many other sports. Why are we destroying generations of young athletes to compete on the world stage when we have very little change of medalling against Chinese, US and Eastern European countries (always exceptions - but at what cost?!). Gymnastics is a wonderful sport but has been ruined by this notion of elite.
As an ex elite RG gymnast, I can vouch for all of the above and more. I represented Australia both as a junior and senior many times. I just absorbed the bullying and abuse. I tried to hide it all from my parents as it just made it worse if they said anything to the coach. I tried to just stare at her and not react as even though she was yelling at me and asking me a question, she didn’t really want an honest answer. Even when I told her i wasn’t supposed to be doing something because my Physio has told me not to, she yelled at me and made sarcastic remarks because I was injured. I gave up everything to do this sport, sacrificed so much and never once did the coach acknowledge it. I was made to feel bad almost all of the time. She didn’t believe me when I was injured, shouted at me daily, reduced me to tears Almost daily, told me I was making mistakes on purpose and was not trying. The only time she was nice to me was when she was on display at a competition. If I had to recall everything this coach has done and said to me, you would think I was making it up. I recognise it for what it is now as I’m an adult but just desperately wanted to compete so just put up with it and stayed. I wish things had been different as I would have stayed longer in this sport. I now want nothing to do with it.
Even thought it’s almost 10 years ago that I left this beautiful sport, the abuse I received from my coach still Haunts me. I should never have have had to abandon my Olympic dream. I think the more talented you are, the worse you get treated. I know she continued to treat other talented gymnasts the same way she treated me....... The support and praise I received from my school teachers, university lecturers and superiors in the workplace was the complete opposite to what I received in the gym. I was told I was lazy, not trying, too heavy, rude and more. I was shouted at daily, I was so unhappy even though I was achieving at the highest level in RG. If my coach had been a teacher, she would have never been able to get away with her mistreatment of me. People wonder why we stayed. There was no other gym and coach in WA to go to that offered 6 days a week training. We had no choice, stay and get treated badly or leave. If you complained, you got treated even worse. She continues to get away with it to this day. In the end, I just had to leave and forget about representing Australia at the olympics as I just couldn’t handle it anymore. I was a child/teenager and should never ever been treated in this way.
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