Predators will find ways to be predators…

Elite sports involves a lot of kids/teens being alone with their coaches. Even outside of locker rooms, parents just leave their kids to train for 2-3+ hours with no parental supervision. Just kids and coaches - because coaches, especially successful ones, are respected authority figures.

Unfortunately as well SafeSport is very underfunded and underpowered to do shit. In figure skating there’s been several coaches who SafeSport has banned, only for said coaches to sue SafeSport and get a paltry punishment for their crimes - and since SafeSport is the ultimate authority other than the legal system, the sport’s organizing body can do nothing to overturn either one for a harsher sentence.

The thing I am happy about is that this issue is being brought to light and something will be forced to change in the US. I can only imagine what’s happening in places like Russia and China where parents are straight up banned from some training facilities and some underaged athletes live in dorms year round…

Although the Russians are banned from international competition, they are holding their own this year. To no one’s surprise, she’s been allowed to compete.

The egregious part is that her free skate is all about the doping scandal including clips of the Western media talking about it spliced into the music. Her coaches talk about it representing her struggle. (I’ve refused to watch it, but that’s what I understand). It’s very obviously continuing the propaganda about “the evil west is out to get poor Russian girls” Russia’s been using her as an example of.

But when has skating and sports in general not been propaganda for Russia? Their sports ministry is literally funded by their military branch.