A group of Canadian gymnasts presented on Wednesday a lawsuit against the national federation (Gymnastics Canada) and provincial gymnastics bodies for tolerating a climate of abuse and mistreatment for decades.
“This action arises from physical, sexual and psychological abuse of Canadian gymnasts while under the care and control of the provincial gymnastics organization in their jurisdiction and of Gymnastics Canada“, indicates a copy of the document obtained by AFP.
“Around the world, the sport of gymnastics has come under scrutiny for its culture of cruelty,” the plaintiffs’ attorneys stressed. In the text they pointed out that «a culture of control» and «abusive behavior led to the creation of an environment in which abuse and mistreatment of athletes is commonplace.”
The claim was filed with the Supreme Court of British Columbia, the westernmost province of Canada. The main plaintiff, former gymnast Amelia Cline, resides there.
After leaving the sport as a teenager, Cline said he is taking legal action to “hold these institutions accountable” for their abuses.
In an interview with AFP, Cline said suffer from “long-term persistent effects... of that mistreatment”, including chronic physical and psychological pain.
The lawsuit names the national gymnastics federation, as well as the federations of six Canadian provinces. These include British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec.
Open letter
This legal action comes just over a month after a group of more than 70 gymnasts published a letter to denounce a “toxic culture””. They also denounced abusive practices that persist in Canadian gymnastics. Many of the signatories have already left the competition.
The letter, which has already collected more than 400 signatures, asks the federal government to order an independent investigation. The petition came after the group responsible said it has “gotten nowhere” in its attempt to get Gymnastics Canada to conduct an internal investigation and address its concerns.
«All disciplines, rhythmic, acrobatic, artistic, tumbling and trampoline, are, to a certain extent, affected by this culture. And because of the mastery that coaches have developed over the decades,” said the group’s spokeswoman, Kim Shore.
“The accountability system has to change,” he stressed.
