I stand with Simone Biles. I admire her integrity & bravery away from the gymnastics club as much as I admire her breath-taking talent as an athlete.
It takes courage to stand up to abusive coaches, and it takes even more chutzpah to call out slimy " team doctors" who are touching the athletes inappropriately.
In school, I was an athlete. Most of my coaches are/were wonderful people who helped me grow in a healthy direction. However, I had to quit basketball as a high school junior because of a coach's behavior. This person's style of " leadership" involved screaming at the athletes and humiliating them in front of teammates. That is all I can say without mentioning this coach by name or any other identifying feature.
My junior year of high school was rough. To be honest, I blocked most of that year from memory-- it was just too painful. My mental illness was still at its peak and I probably spent more time on the therapist's couch than I did in class. My eating disorder was also at its worst-- which depleted my physical abilities. My coach didn't see me as a person-- a person who needed help, so I quit. I had enough internal chaos without someone shouting in my ear-- reminding me that I am not a star.
The problem of abusive coaches in girls/ women's sports isn't confined to the elite ranks of national teams. Nor is coach's abuse a new phenomenon in elite sports-- look at Kerri Strug's ' miraculous' vault after sustaining a bad injury
Win At All Cost is a fallacy. Revisiting the Strug situation as a grown adult 20 plus years later has me seeing through different eyes. The athlete needed medical attention and a little mental health TLC. Instead, her coach forced her to perform like a circus animal.
This is so wrong. Athletes, regardless of the level at which they compete in sports, are human. Their physical and mental health is important.
I stand with Simone, and every other female athlete who has suffered because of a ruthless coach.
~Sarah McCarren
28 July 2021
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