An Indelible Stain: The Conspiracy of Silence

摘要

Athlete A is the daughter of one of my colleagues. Her grandfather lived in my neighborhood. I remember the feeling in my gut when I watched her parents being interviewed on the local television news after she revealed her identity. Thirteen hundred miles to the southwest, my daughter started up a conversation at a social function for local athletes with a woman around her age who seemed to be alone and apart from the group; shunned for being among the first gymnasts to go public with her story of abuse. Both athletes were part of the more than 150 gymnast victims involved in "the scandal," a stain on our profession that we cannot erase, but must work to prevent in the future.