(Reuters) – Gymnastics Canada said on Thursday that allegations of physical, sexual and psychological abuse by coaches and officials in a lawsuit filed against the sports governing body “describe behavior that is unacceptable” and said it takes the claims “seriously.”
Gymnastics Canada said in a statement that it had only learned of the lawsuit from media reports and had not yet been served.
The lawsuit, filed by a group of former gymnasts on Wednesday in the British Columbia Supreme Court, alleges that Gymnastics Canada and six affiliated provincial organizations turned a blind eye to an abusive culture that saw athletes subjected to threats and humiliation, and inappropriate touching from coaches while being forced to train while injured.
None of the allegations have been proven in court.
“Although we have not been served, the allegations we have been made aware of in the claim describe behaviour that is unacceptable in any sport environment, and we take them very seriously,” said Gymnastics Canada. “As leaders in the sport of Gymnastics within Canada, we are committed to providing a safe environment for members of our sport that is accessible, inclusive, respects our participants’ personal goals and is free from all forms of maltreatment.”
Amelia Cline, a former gymnast who left the sport because of an alleged abusive coach, is listed as the lead plaintiff, but more than a dozen other gymnasts have joined the lawsuit, which seeks class action status.
In March, a group of more than 70 current and former Canadian gymnasts called for an independent investigation into what they described as a “toxic culture and abusive practices” within their sport.
The gymnasts, who are and have been members of the Olympic and national team, said in a letter sent to Sport Canada’s director general Vicki Walker that for nearly a decade the fear of retribution prevented them from speaking out.
According to the letter, there have been multiple complaints and arrests for various forms of emotional, physical and sexual abuse, and that the subject of the complaints have been Canadian coaches, many of whom the athletes were exposed to as minors.
(Reporting by Steve Keating in Toronto; Editing by Leslie Adler)
