More Trouble for U.S. Figure Skating?

As if U.S. Figure Skating doesn’t have enough to worry about with expiring TV contracts and shrinking audiences, two female skaters have filed lawsuits against their former coach for alleged sexual abuse, according to Sports Illustrated. In the lawsuits, Emilie Nussear, 24, and Collete Appel, 21, allege that their former coach, Bob Young, forced them to strip in front of him, touched their bodies and asked them sexual questions. The alleged abuse occurred between 1998 and 2004 when the girls were teenagers, but they were too scared to come forward. In most sexual abuse cases, the alleged victims are not identified by the press, but Nussear and Appel wanted to be identified to help bring awareness to their cause, according to their attorney, Gary Phelan.

Young, who was responsible for bringing Oksana Baiul and Viktor Petrenko to Connecticut for their training, was banned from coaching at USFSA events several years ago after settling a previous sexual abuse allegation with another young skater, Jessica Roos. Young continued to coach privately for a few years after his ban, however.

This is the second alleged abuse case that I’ve heard about in the last six months. Last October, former Canadian pairs champion and current coach Lloyd Eisler was suspended by Skate Canada for one year for alleged inappropriate behavior toward a 15-year-old skater that he was coaching. While Eisler cannot coach at Skate Canada events, he continues to coach in the L.A. area where he now resides.

When the Eisler story first broke, I sensed that the allegations against him were just the tip of the iceberg, and that other cases would emerge. It doesn’t surprise me at all that more skaters are coming forward with allegations of alleged abuse. Skating is a breeding ground for this kind of activity, when you think about it. Put a bunch of young trusting prepubescent girls in tights and leotards in a room, and someone, somewhere is going to take advantage of them. I expect that as more cases come forward – and I suspect there are more -- coaches, choreographers, judges, and other officials who deal regularly with young skaters will come under closer scrutiny. While Skate Canada and U.S. Figure Skating have policies in place for reporting abuse, banning a coach from national competitions isn’t enough. These organizations will need to do more to protect its talented skaters.