Today, the British "Mirror" published a powerful report. In this report, three Retired British gymnastics athletes came forward and spoke out about their experiences of being bullied and abused by coaches.
Catherine · Lyons, a former winner of the European Junior Gymnastics Championships, recalls: "I was beaten with a stick by a coach during a training session, and I was starved for a week because I was overweight." Coaches sometimes even shut Leons in cupboards until her mood calmed down. All these inhuman encounters have left Leons with psychological scars that are difficult to heal. Although the 19-year-old has said goodbye to gymnastics, Lyons still has to continue to receive psychological counseling.
Catherine · Lyons
A similar encounter was commonwealth gymnastics champion Lisa Mason, who represented the British team at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Mason, 38, claims to have been abused since he was 10 years old. "In training, the coach would place relatively hard artificial turf under the area we were in to force us to keep our feet upright, and each training session would not stop until blood came out of our hands." She also revealed: "Sometimes gymnasts are ordered by coaches to take painkillers to continue training after being injured. Teammates who refuse to take painkillers may be stopped by coaches. ”
Lisa · Mason
Another former gymnast, who did not want to be named, said: "In training, mental and physical abuse has become the norm completely, and sometimes it feels like the purpose of training is to submit to the coach, not to improve the skill." I'll never know if I could have done better without all this abuse. ”
In response to the allegations of several British gymnasts, the British gymnastics management body issued a statement. "We condemn any behavior that is harmful to the health of our gymnasts, the abuse of athletes is a complete violation of the coaches' code of conduct, and the relevant authorities will investigate these allegations and will discipline those responsible to prevent similar situations from happening again," the statement read. ”
It is reported that the collective voice of British gymnasts was also influenced by the launch of the documentary "Athlete A". This documentary focuses on the former team doctor Larry Lee of the American Gymnastics Team. Nassar's sexual assault scandal. Nassar has sexually assaulted hundreds of underage U.S. gymnasts, including Alexandra Kelly. Lesman, Simon Byers and McKayla · Maroni and other gymnasts. In the end, Nassar was sentenced to up to 175 years in prison for his outrageous actions.
Larry · Nassar