WAG Discussion of abuse in USAG - Nassar

[Ali'sMom]

I think I also heard that tickets were supposed to be on sale for the Hopes Classic today and the venue said the event has been cancelled until further notice?

The Hopes Classic is historically at the Ranch, and I didn't think a new venue has been decided. The Elite calendar still says TBD for location.

 

[wandrewsjr]

The Hopes Classic is historically at the Ranch, and I didn't think a new venue has been decided. The Elite calendar still says TBD for location.

I think she is talking about the Hopes Championship held in conjunction with the US Classic. This event is not longer listed on the Columbus, OH venue's website.

 

[amiandjim]

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I found this article interesting. It’s kinda sad that a gym that was known as scary after that documentary, is actually one that at least protected their gymnasts.

 

[LGnyc]

I too feel bad for the current crop of girls training elite but keeping an obviously dysfunctional regime in place , after all that has happened with the sexual abuse and physical/mental abuse that allowed these behaviors to continue for decades , was not the answer either. I think USAG hoped it would all go away with the incarceration of Larry but it virtually opened the floodgates where gymnasts felt empowered to speak up...AND I think folks started to relook at the prior verbal and physical abuse complaints that were ignored in the past and the perpetrators of those vile behaviors needed to go as well.

I get that you need to have a regimented , strict program to succeed but Simone seems to have been coached without the verbal and physical attacks by her coaches....and she was successful so punitive methods aren't the only way...and that's where USAG needs to be headed.

To your point exactly, this article on HuffPo really spoke volumes to me.
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entr...s_5a738bb4e4b01ce33eb1231c?section=us_opinion

 

[GymFan96]

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I found this article interesting. It’s kinda sad that a gym that was known as scary after that documentary, is actually one that at least protected their gymnasts.

Good on Parkettes for watching their kids. They avoided a lot of grief by keeping a close watch on their kids.

About the gymnasts who say they were never abused. I’d like to know did Nassar do the same treatment in question and they felt it was appropriate? Did he do it differently such as using gloves and getting consent first? Or did he not do it at all?

Clearly he abused many people in ways that could never be justified as medically sound. But I think if someone who was not abused would give their perspective, it could clear up some of the confusion surrounding his treatment methods.

 

[Seeker]

This lawyer seems delusional. Most of them talked about him penetrating them WITHOUT WARNING or consent! And most said it was without gloves. That is inappropriate regardless of whether the internal work was warranted or not.

I would like to find out whether these internal procedures are common on other countries’ gymnastics teams. That might give a clue as to how useful and necessary they really are.

She disgusts me on so many levels.

 

[sce]

Good on Parkettes for watching their kids. They avoided a lot of grief by keeping a close watch on their kids.

About the gymnasts who say they were never abused. I’d like to know did Nassar do the same treatment in question and they felt it was appropriate? Did he do it differently such as using gloves and getting consent first? Or did he not do it at all?

Clearly he abused many people in ways that could never be justified as medically sound. But I think if someone who was not abused would give their perspective, it could clear up some of the confusion surrounding his treatment methods.

I would assume that these girls did not receive that treatment. Very possible because their coaches were not just in the room but paying attention to the treatment being administered.

 

[Lunde]

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I found this article interesting. It’s kinda sad that a gym that was known as scary after that documentary, is actually one that at least protected their gymnasts.

Well it says that Donna Strauss originally intended to give evidence in support of Nassar . "I’m thinking, why are these girls doing this?” Strauss said." but she changed her mind later after her husband convinced her not to do it. So I am not sure that I see much of an athlete protection perspective - she originally thought that the girls were lying!

Not really sure they can be sure that none of their gymnasts were abused - I'm sure that many of Nassar's victims will never come forward in public

 

[GymFan96]

Well it says that Donna Strauss originally intended to give evidence in support of Nassar . "I’m thinking, why are these girls doing this?” Strauss said." but she changed her mind later after her husband convinced her not to do it. So I am not sure that I see much of an athlete protection perspective - she originally thought that the girls were lying!

I don’t know if she thought they were lying, maybe just hadn’t heard all the facts yet. Unwarranted accusations and misunderstandings are pretty rare but they do happen. Yeah she was going to speak in favor of Nassar but decided against it when she saw the truth. She doesn’t say how long it took her to change her mind.

 

[QuietColours]

Well it says that Donna Strauss originally intended to give evidence in support of Nassar . "I’m thinking, why are these girls doing this?” Strauss said." but she changed her mind later after her husband convinced her not to do it. So I am not sure that I see much of an athlete protection perspective - she originally thought that the girls were lying!

While not the ideal reaction, this seemed like a very human one to me. Nassar was someone she had worked with 20+ years, always had good experiences with and a positive relationship. Taking a few days and some conversations to come to terms with what he did seems perfectly human, to me, and she took that time before speaking out and ultimately didn't. As has been said, he groomed everyone.

 

[LindyHopper]

https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/ol...-in-2015-1517484720?__twitter_impression=true

USOC, time to face the music

 

[Flyaway]

While not the ideal reaction, this seemed like a very human one to me. Nassar was someone she had worked with 20+ years, always had good experiences with and a positive relationship. Taking a few days and some conversations to come to terms with what he did seems perfectly human, to me, and she took that time before speaking out and ultimately didn't. As has been said, he groomed everyone.

Yes I agree. I am a thinker. I have considered how I would respond to hearing accusations about someone I’ve worked with for years and feel I know very well. I believe I would have a similar initial reaction as her. Not in total disbelief, but shock and one of wanting to gather as much information from all sides as possible. I don’t think we need to be overly critical of people’s first reactions.

 

[Seeker]

I don’t know if she thought they were lying, maybe just hadn’t heard all the facts yet. Unwarranted accusations and misunderstandings are pretty rare but they do happen. Yeah she was going to speak in favor of Nassar but decided against it when she saw the truth. She doesn’t say how long it took her to change her mind.

Agree — let’s keep the focus where and on who it belongs and not vilify everyone in the vicinity. There were many people that “should have known”, but truly did not. Were they ignorant of standard practice and accepted medical protocols (he should have never been treating girls alone anyway)? Yes. Did they know what was actually going on behind closed doors? In 99% of the cases, that answer is no. As hard as that is to imagine now that we have so much more information, that’s the reality. When you know better, you do better. EVERYONE needs to do better.

Donna’s initial reaction to the news is probably a lot more common than anyone realizes. Bill’s advice to her was dead-on: gather more facts before you speak. And it sounds like she did just that and realized rather quickly that Nassar was a monster.

 

[rjb123]

Agree — let’s keep the focus where and on who it belongs and not vilify everyone in the vicinity. There were many people that “should have known”, but truly did not. Were they ignorant of standard practice and accepted medical protocols (he should have never been treating girls alone anyway)? Yes. Did they know what was actually going on behind closed doors? In 99% of the cases, that answer is no. As hard as that is to imagine now that we have so much more information, that’s the reality. When you know better, you do better. EVERYONE needs to do better.

Donna’s initial reaction to the news is probably a lot more common than anyone realizes. Bill’s advice to her was dead-on: gather more facts before you speak. And it sounds like she did just that and realized rather quickly that Nassar was a monster.

I agree. I can totally see her thinking "what the heck is going on here". Also she said that the policy at her gym was that an athlete was NEVER alone with one adult. So she may have been baffled by HOW it could happen because in HER world the coach was there when the athlete was with the trainer. The girls were not going to see him alone- that was their way of handling things. I can see her initial confusion, and I appreciate the assessment she did before blindly coming out in support.

 

[Aussie_coach]

Hindsight is always 20/20. The signs might seem obvious to people now, but if the idea that he might be abusing an athlete had never entered your mind, yiu would not read the signs in the same way. No doubt Donna Strauss did not initially believe the accusations because her gymnasts did not experience the abuse, due to their policies.

Like many others though I am struggling with the concept that he managed to abuse so many kids, for so long. USAG seems to be like a snowball rolling down the hill. It's just getting bigger and bigger. I wonder who will be next.

 

[RGmomLV]

news: Al Fong's athletes are not affected by Nassar. http://www.columbiatribune.com/sports/20180127/fong-gage-gymnasts-unaffected-by-nassar-scandal He aslo has the same policy never leave kids alone with doctors. Al Fong also was known for his strict methods and I do believe he changed a lot. I really like his athletes Sarah Finnegan and Brenna Dowell.

 

[gymdog]

Well I'm glad none of them were abused obviously. But some of the national team members say this happened on a treatment table that was in the athlete cabin where they were required to stay and no one was allowed (except Larry Nassar apparently). So it just isn't true that Al Fong never let them out of his sight, unless there was some special arrangement where his athletes stayed in a different place during national team camps, which I know is not the case so why bother to say it. So under his policies if he had athletes present during the time that Nassar ramped up his abuse at the ranch which does seem to happen in a specific time period, I guess they could have been victimized too. It's a false sense of security to just say it like that and act like a lot of the problems with the culture in this sport or what was happening at the ranch aren't still there. And by the way at least one former GAGE athlete has made a public negative comment on this situation so maybe he should let them speak for themselves. And last, maybe they put words in their mouth but to say it like they were "unaffected" is some serious BS. Maybe they weren't assaulted by Nassar but I'm SURE some of them were affected.

 

[RGmomLV]

I understand unaffect in the article means not sexually abused by Nassar. I still want to give him the benefit of doubt that at least in his gym, and when he is around, like at ranch he doesn’t leave kids alone. And like avictim said in her statement if a parent is a phiscian and accompany the kid in the exam room Nassar won’t abuse her. I sure Nassar knows the policies of different gyms——they have been working together for 20-30 ys, he will choose his “safe” victims. Anyway I am glad for all the athelets who were treated by Nassar and not sexually abused by him. They narrowly avoided a life long nightmare.

 

[gymdog]

I understand unaffect in the article means not sexually abused by Nassar. I still want to give him the benefit of doubt that at least in his gym, and when he is around, like at ranch he doesn’t leave kids alone. And like avictim said in her statement if a parent is a phiscian and accompany the kid in the exam room Nassar won’t abuse her. I sure Nassar knows the policies of different gyms——they have been working together for 20-30 ys, he will choose his “safe” victims. Anyway I am glad for all the athelets who were treated by Nassar and not sexually abused by him. They narrowly avoided a life long nightmare.

There were victims who had parents in the exam room when he abused them. This happened to people who good parents and good coaches. And I for one have to stick up for them. Maybe even to some you would think are better by most measures than those who have promoted themselves the loudest.

You don't have to give him the benefit of doubt because I can assure you that his gymnasts were in areas of the ranch where other victims were abused without his supervision. AND THAT'S THE PROBLEM. This is why I've been watching some of these statements with a raised eyebrow.

But again I don't know exactly how the media approached him or what comments might have been taken out of a larger context. So I'll give benefit of doubt for that.

 

[BritBrat]

Watching the live sentencing. This monster doesn't look remorseful at all. SMH