International GYMNAST Magazine: ESPN Takes Swing at Gymnastics

ESPN Takes Swing at Gymnastics
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Dwight Normile on April 16, 2008
 
I watched "E:60 Roundtable: Violated" on ESPN this week. Compelling stuff. Male
coach touches young girl in wrong places. Girl comes forth, coach goes to
prison. Another coach does same, gets hired at another gym while awaiting trial
for felonies.
USA Gymnastics President Steve Penny was in a no-win situation as he answered
questions, on camera, from an ESPN journalist. How could USA Gymnastics allow
its banner to hang in these gyms? Why does USAG's background check only screen
for felonies? Why can't USA Gymnastics ensure purity in every last coach at the
thousands of gyms across 50 states and also make sure they all show up for work
on time and never say a cross word to their budding gymnasts?
That USA Gymnastics is responsible for the individual hiring practices of every
member club is ludicrous. I'm not questioning the veracity of the cases brought
to light here. The alleged actions of these gymnastics instructors make my
stomach turn. But to report that this behavior is exclusive to gymnastics is
off the mark.
This ESPN piece was really about life. You could replace the word gymnastics
with any youth activity  softball, swimming, church youth group, Boy Scouts 
and produce the same story. Heck, right before I had switched channels to ESPN,
I watched Pope Benedict decry pedofile priests.
That said, if gymnastics is generally perceived as a breeding ground for
inappropriate behavior between adults and minors, all the hugging that goes on
during competitions isn't helping. If you watch any women's meet on TV in the
U.S. you will see more hugs than actual routines. After every dismount, a
female gymnast must endure a receiving line of hugs from coaches and teammates
before she can finally sit down and relax. And the majority of these hugs
rarely celebrate anything extraordinary, as they should. What's difficult to
watch is that a young girl rarely hugs back when it's her male coach's embrace.
These superficial hugs might be a coach's way of trying to show he's a nice
guy, or that the coach-gymnast relationship is healthy, or a way to get on
camera. Or the coach might really love his gymnast, but in a platonic way. But
these excessive, emotionless embraces really should be replaced with high-fives
or a simple pat on the back. Something sincere. Save the hug for winning the
Olympics, or something. Hugs in gymnastics (or in any sport) should be
spontaneous.
Gymnastics is not perfect, but it is good in many ways. Bad things simply
happen in all areas of life. After I watched ESPN's show, I too felt violated.