U.S. gymnastics championships
- Thread starter Mathman
- Start date
I just read the second article. A nauseating abuse of power. I must say, Johar, that I've often thought (and I'm not alone) that the danger in gymnastics comes largely from the facts that the gymnasts in questions are usually girls, and that they're generally very young. They're too young to be able to make mature judgments about what is too perilous to do, so they'll do anything they're asked to do. I know that coaches of teenaged guys can get very rough and abusive in terms of language, but even the burliest football coach cannot literally loom over his team members and make them feel like hobbits facing a dragon. And in absolutist environments, where the tradition is not to question authority, the dangers are magnified a thousandfold.
Of course, this particular situation is an extreme case, where the coach physically attacked the child, but I'm sure there are lesser instances of bullying, perhaps with some physical elements, in many gymnastics programs around the world. If a coach can produce results for a federation, I'm not sure the federation's officials will ask too many questions about the coach's methods.
- Joined
- Jul 26, 2003
How utterly awful. I think it's proof that it's 'normal' as only 1 other coach attempted to stop the abuse. IMHO, no coach should physically abuse players. I can understand insults to some extent because players will need to deal with jeering from the crowds, etc. Even then, there are limits.
I'm pretty sure all sports have some coaches who believe in belittling and bullying their students. This past Fall, there was the scandal at Rutgers where coaches were filmed verbally and physically abusing the basketball players. The players pretty much felt that this was 'normal'.
I'm pretty sure all sports have some coaches who believe in belittling and bullying their students. This past Fall, there was the scandal at Rutgers where coaches were filmed verbally and physically abusing the basketball players. The players pretty much felt that this was 'normal'.
In the mid-1990s there was a landmark book called Little Girls in Pretty Boxes.
http://www.amazon.com/Little-Girls-Pretty-Boxes-Breaking/dp/0446676829
It dealt specifically with gymnasts and skaters, though I seem to remember that it concentrated more on gymnastics. (Though a milestone book, it has been outdated in some respects. One big one: the author lamented the eclipse of Michelle Kwan in favor of a younger, more spritelike Tara Lipinski. The author had no way to know that Kwan would endure triumphantly for another decade, even though she was a giant at five foot two inches, and become a mature artist.) The book told some heartrending stories of girls damaged in large ways and small by the constant need for tiny, skinny sprites in these two sports. Fortunately, since the writing of this book, age limits have been placed on both sports, so things are a bit better for both gymnasts and skaters at the Olympic level. (I think this book helped turn the tide; it had significant popularity in its early years in print.)
When I see the powerful physiques of gymnasts such as Aly Raisman, Shawn Johnson, and Jordyn Wieber, I feel more reassured that there is room in the Olympics for elite gymnasts who are not little wisps. But when I see the Chinese gymnastics team, I feel just as sad today as I did when I first read Little Girls in Pretty Boxes.
http://www.amazon.com/Little-Girls-Pretty-Boxes-Breaking/dp/0446676829
It dealt specifically with gymnasts and skaters, though I seem to remember that it concentrated more on gymnastics. (Though a milestone book, it has been outdated in some respects. One big one: the author lamented the eclipse of Michelle Kwan in favor of a younger, more spritelike Tara Lipinski. The author had no way to know that Kwan would endure triumphantly for another decade, even though she was a giant at five foot two inches, and become a mature artist.) The book told some heartrending stories of girls damaged in large ways and small by the constant need for tiny, skinny sprites in these two sports. Fortunately, since the writing of this book, age limits have been placed on both sports, so things are a bit better for both gymnasts and skaters at the Olympic level. (I think this book helped turn the tide; it had significant popularity in its early years in print.)
When I see the powerful physiques of gymnasts such as Aly Raisman, Shawn Johnson, and Jordyn Wieber, I feel more reassured that there is room in the Olympics for elite gymnasts who are not little wisps. But when I see the Chinese gymnastics team, I feel just as sad today as I did when I first read Little Girls in Pretty Boxes.
- Joined
- Jun 27, 2003
It's no different than the horror stories that Jenny and other lady skaters have in recent years recounted in articles and blog posts. Women's sports deals with it in just about every sport, not just skating and gymnastics. (I am not saying its right, I'm just saying it's more common than we'd like to think about)
