He can be reached at [emailprotected]. Fourteen different LSCs are represented in the Gold Medal level. "I don't want to be the one to sit here and say 36 is not too many, one is too many, but this is not just a problem that's isolated to one sport," said Wielgus. Tuite responded to the findings in a May 2021 statement put out by SJSU. She is a graduate of Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, with BS degree in journalism. While the organization continues to work compassionately and tirelessly on our comprehensive abuse-prevention initiative, which is routinely recognized as the best in Olympic sport, we remain as frustrated as you are with inaccurate, sensational, issue-driven reporting like this. Merrie Street, WBAL AM News Director. This website may constitute Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules. He gathered his women athletes next to the Spada, of the United States, said that at age 13, she was once pushed down so hard by a coach that she needed hip surgery. Asked if he had apologized to any of the young teen victims, Wielgus responded, "You feel I need to apologize to them? Email her at madilynne.medina@sfgate.com, One of the largest movie theaters in SF to close permanently, 'Zero visibility' conditions: All roads to Tahoe are closed, Report: Matthew McConaughey has a massive Salesforce paycheck, 'Really cool sight': Rare waterspout forms in Northern California, Avalanche slams into Tahoe apartment building amid blizzard, Plan to bring bullet train from LA to Vegas is underway, What it looks like inside Coit Towers former apartment, Grapevine closed indefinitely due to heavy snow and ice, A different horse': Bay Area will likely continue to see rain, Hundreds of thousands of workers have abandoned downtown SF, Popular yet divisive fast food chain coming to this Bay Area town, Tahoe's snowfall totals are on track to break records, This restaurant is one of the hardest reservations to get in Hawaii, Wealthy Bay Area town grapples with 'attack on whiteness' controversy, How Red Rock became the only privately owned island in SF Bay, 'Are we going to love it to death? There was previously a complaint filed regarding an incident alleged to have occurred in 1975, back when swimming was governed by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU). And year after year, he documented his emailed pleas to former Athletic Director Marie Tuite and others, asking them to do something about Shaw, to no avail. Ken Stopkotte, named Indiana High School Boys Swimming and Diving State Coach of the year for 2009, said the problem is pervasive and has been going on his entire 27 years in coaching. Concussion Inc. has reported that Hall of Fame swimming coach Murray Stephens is back as the operator of the Meadowbrook Aquatic Center, home of Michael Phelps original base, the North Baltimore Aquatic Club, after having disappeared as the face of the center in the wake of allegations of sexual misconduct. After I provided WBAL with numerous articles and appeared on air more than a dozen times, talking about the USA Swimming scandal at no financial cost to them the station abruptly removed all my stories and interviews after the first one on NBAC appeared. And USA Swimming I cant defend them any more. In another incident, Ormond said that Szauder told her, Sion, zip up your hoodie before I get too excited. Such behavior by Szauder was excused by Canadian officials, Ormond said, as a cultural difference because he was European. A subsequent search of Hindson's home turned up more locker room footage and a large selection of child pornography. Here is the story as it appeared on WBAL. Swimmers interviewed described an unhealthy culture of thinness and disordered eating in an event that inevitably foments tension between art and sport. As to USAS, ugh. The coaches have molested, fondled and abused dozens of swimmers, according to court records and interviews conducted by ABC News for reports Friday on "World News with Diane Sawyer" and "20/20.". (PSYCH SHEET DROP), Southern Illinois Freshman Ruard van Renen Pops 44.89 100 Yard Back in MAC Time Trial, Swimming Transfers Were Down Last Season; Womens Transfer Portal Window Opens Thursday. The new investigation reversed the outcome of the first, concluding that Shaws pressure point therapy was bogus and that he had, indeed, sexually abused 10 female athletes. How could something be gotten so wrong? Hopkins said the young athletes asked him. Papazian had taken over the school in 2016. "Congratulations," read the letter. That was an awesome start to the season, he said, a really, really awesome start.. Education | You are a twit. Tess Howley was among the standouts for the Long Island Aquatic Club (LIAC) earlier this month in East Meadow. Its a Fitting Capper to Wide Official Cover-Up in the Ted Agu Football Conditioning Death at Cal. WebMD Swimming Approves 2022-2023 Meet Schedule. Do they not wonder if there are other alleged victims? Congress is looking into more alleged sexual assault of Olympic athletes beyond gymnastics this time involving USA Swimming and other sports. As I said in yesterdays post, Baltimores City Paper published a rather pointless, painting-by-numbers story on the Doe v. Muchnick lawsuit settlement. The bullying and harassment both preceded and succeeded the incident itself. North Baltimore Aquatic Club head coach Paul Yetter, coach of one of the best 400 IMers in history, runs the math on his rule of thumb for event potential. Olivia Zhang, 30, who formerly competed for the Chinese national team, said her coach used a metal rod to hit her knee when her leg wasnt fully extended out of the water in training, leaving a scar. USA Swimming states: Because USA Swimming (and therefore its Code of Conduct) was not in existence in 1975, the organization legally had no recourse in the matter. Baltimore police have found no record of any complaint being passed on yet. All the athletes have experienced some level of emotional abuse, Williams wrote. All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! And swimmers sometimes have skewers for roasting marshmallows taped to the back of their legs during workouts. Later, on April 18, Muchnick posted a blog that named the plaintiff, calling him the "co-sex assault perpetrator" in the incident. Nations Capital Swim Club (Potomac Valley) 68,604. I will continue to fully cooperate with any and all investigations. The most egregious actions were at WBAL radio, a historic and influential outlet in Baltimore. The sending of this email does not create an attorney-client relationship. Thankfully, people such as the DOJ, the FBI and some other investigative agencies jumped into the matter and properly looked into it, Hopkins said. . Like Ive repeatedly said for weeksthis scandal only will get worse. The Department of Justice said in its report that there are potentially many more. Shaw, who has declined to talk to the media and is under criminal investigation by the FBI, resigned in August 2020. ", "I teach media law," McKenna continues, "I get it-the internet, the First Amendment, I wrote the book on wiretapping and electronic privacy-so it's unusual that I come out ever wanting to limit speech. Additionally, when the complaint involves abuse of a minor, USA Swimming reports that information to the appropriate law enforcement authorities. Hindson was sentenced in 2008 to 33 years in federal prison. Before joining the Mercury News, she worked for The Associated Press in Cheyenne, Detroit and Dallas. King's lawyer, Jamie Harley, said some of the responsibility belongs to the swimmers' parents whose ambition for their children blinded them to the problem. Muchnick's post reprints the apologies written by the two alleged perpetrators of the incident and, citing unnamed "swimming sources," says it is still the subject of a USA Swimming probe. Szauder also did not respond to previous attempts to reach him. Miss Manners: I shouldn't call because the phone scares people? The operative question when is enough enough? But Gloushkov Leventhal said she realized that athletes from other countries often do not have the same satisfying experience. USA Swimming didnt do anything, because they couldnt. NCAA College Swimming Comparison If you would like to see a comparison of Amber Smith's 100 Yard Freestyle time with the fastest 100 Yard Freestyle times for NCAA college swimmers from each Conference and team, please click on one of the NCAA divisions below. Not one phone call or email was sent to the alleged victim who came forward. Your Privacy Choices (Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads). After complaints by the mother of the swimmer who'd been bumped, the two other swimmers wrote "apology notes" that were "accepted," and "at no time" did anyone involved say there had been "any conduct of a sexual nature"-until 10 months later, after Muchnick started writing about the incident. Swimming Coach Accused Of Molestation At North Baltimore Aquatic Club. While I will accept a significant degree of credit for reporting on this story for a bit longer than Irv, the fact is that his tenacious and accurate reporting particularly over the last five months has been nothing short of remarkable. USA Swimming has fought back, responding to parents of the club with a list of Questions and Answers. Im looking forward to when I can tell the whole story regarding the tragic situation at SJSU. Williams later researched depression among artistic swimmers. Even after confirming, via conversations and voicemails, that my reporting was entirely accurate. Why? Ron DeSantis apocalyptic attack on higher education, Teacher at California high school arrested after recording devices found in restroom, days after the federal report was released. For USA Swimming not to investigate such a serious charge, especially since it involved a coach associated with this most famed club, is staggeringand made even more astounding considering that NBAC acted in such swift fashion. If youre not tall and super skinny basically if you dont look like a model with light skin, you have no chance to get to the top level, said Myriam Glez, 40, a former chief executive of USA Artistic Swimming and a two-time Olympian. But "ten months after this incident, Muchnick falsely, maliciously and repeatedly began to publish defamatory statements that Minor John Doe is a 'sexual predator,' a 'child sex abuser],' a 'social deviant' and a 'sexual assailant' who 'digitally penetrated' and was repeatedly 'jabbing fingers' in 'the anus' of another swimmer.". Ill put it right out there. They investigated and passed it on the police, and the coach lost his membership. We asked for clarification on this issue, but received no response. They did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the lawsuit. (The letter, addressed to parents and friends of NBAC, went into some detail about how complaints within the program are handled, as it was originally geared toward that audience, as compared to the audience that has been closely following the story through the news and would already be familiar with many of the concepts. "He had almost every conceivable sex act," he said. See 4,114 Swim Jobs You Might Love, PSS Ft Lauderdale: Summer McIntosh Enters Her First 200m Fly Since Winning World Title, Share USA Swimming: The organization legally had no recourse in NBAC Coach Complaint on Facebook, Tweet USA Swimming: The organization legally had no recourse in NBAC Coach Complaint, Submit USA Swimming: The organization legally had no recourse in NBAC Coach Complaint to Reddit, Share USA Swimming: The organization legally had no recourse in NBAC Coach Complaint on Pinterest, Share USA Swimming: The organization legally had no recourse in NBAC Coach Complaint on LinkedIn, though one will recall that there was much coaching turnover in the club in the fall of 2011, FINA ARENA World Cup Series Photo Vault via Olympian Roland Schoeman, Phelps Partners with Paul Casey for Even Par on Day 1 at Dunhill, Sergio Lopez Gets a Big Raise; Guaranteed Assistant Pay Pool and Operating Budgets, What Will Leon Marchand Swim at the 2023 Pac-12 Championships? Founded in 1967, Incorporated in 1968, America's #1 Age Group Team 2023 Swim Swam Partners, LLC. Calls made to Cadigan for comment on this article were not returned. Jessica Long, a 12-time Paralympic gold medalist, is now training at Loyola University in Baltimore, Md. "Your background screening has been thoroughly reviewed and meets the qualification standards set by USA Swimming.". With the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics approaching in July, artistic swimming, as the sport is now known, finds itself awash in scandal that burst into public view recently in Canada and in a handful of other countries. It has come to our attention that a local AM radio station has been broadcasting unfounded accusations about USA Swimmings handling of a complaint to our Safe Sport team related to NBAC involving an alleged incident that occurred 37 years ago. That is our unwavering commitment to you. , a California blogger whose posts on his concussioninc.net website regularly level broadsides at alleged abuses in the world of swimming, last year started honing in on what he reported was foul play at North Baltimore Aquatic Club (NBAC), famous for training world-class swimmers like Olympic gold-medal winners Michael Phelps and Allison Schmitt. Adam Andrasko, the current chief executive of USA Artistic Swimming, said he took the job in 2018 knowing that the sport as a whole needed to have a different cultural view. Efforts in the United States and elsewhere have included diversity campaigns, nutrition seminars and developing an athletes bill of rights. In a statement on Sept. 21, 2021, announcing its findings, the DOJ stated it had concluded that SJSU failed to respond adequately for more than a decade to reports of sexual harassment and that the university retaliated against two employees who had alerted officials. Five swimmers came forward to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and accused Szauder of making inappropriate sexual remarks and shaming athletes about their weight to the point that they had panic attacks. ", Chicago police officer fatally shot on Southwest Side in exchange of gunfire: officials, Chicago police Superintendent David Brown to exit CPD this month in the wake of mayoral election, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. Here is Tim Joyce's originalstory, removed twice by WBAL in Baltimore. In 2019, a 300-page dossier compiled by Hopkins about Shaws alleged abuse circulated to the National Collegiate Athletic Association and Mountain West Conference, raising more concerns regarding Shaw and the original 2009 investigation, according to the SJSU fact page. THE fast swimming continued at Maryland States Friday night as NBAC took control of the meet with numerous top finishes. For hundreds of girls who'd worked According to USA Swimming, that they had no legal recourse because they didnt exist in 1975. He went to practice and was being as positive as he could, even though I knew he was struggling, Mullendore, the senior, said. "That's really disturbing to me, not knowing where those videos are.". Being a member of USA Swimming is a privilege, not a right. Michael Phelps swam his final race at his longtime Baltimore pool, Meadowbrook Aquatic Center, winning a 100m freestyle at the North Baltimore Aquatic Club Mid-Summer Classic on Monday. From the statement: Because USA Swimming (and therefore its Code of Conduct) was not in existence in 1975, the organization legally had no recourse in the matter.. As for Muchnick's purported larger goal-exposing misdeeds among the swimming world's powerful-McKenna says, "more power to anybody who wants to work to uncover something that is really horrible, but this isn't.