Ashley Wagner reveals she was assaulted by John Coughlin

[Colonel Green]

USA Today:

Olympic figure skater Ashley Wagner, the 2016 world silver medalist and most successful U.S. female skater of her era, told USA TODAY Sports this week that the late John Coughlin sexually assaulted her in June 2008 after a party at a national team figure skating camp in Colorado Springs, Colorado, when she had just turned 17 and Coughlin was 22.

Wagner, a three-time national champion who won a team bronze medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics, said Coughlin got into her bed as she slept at the home where the party had been held and began kissing and groping her. “I was absolutely paralyzed in fear,” she said.

I'm glad that Ashley felt able to tell her story now, and that Christine Brennan keeps following this story.

I expect that some of the people in the skating community who railed at Bridget Namiotka will change their tune at testimony from a more famous skater. Others won't, though.

 

[supergirl573]

All of the other skaters who came out to defend the pervert can’t say sh*t because Ashley is more successful than them.

 

[believed]

She is so brave to tell her story and I hope that everyone is willing to listen to her.

 

[judiz]

Unfortunately there will be those rabid Conghlin defenders who will only focus on the fact that Ashley had her first alcoholic drink that night and they will claim her memories are hazy due to that.

 

[believed]

Ashley wrote a piece sharing her story.

Ashley Wagner: I was sexually assaulted at 17. Here's why I’m telling my story now

Olympic medalist Ashley Wagner writes for the first time publicly about how she was sexual assaulted at 17 by ex-teammate John Coughlin.

www.usatoday.com

 

[PRlady]

The sport needed her honesty. I’m glad she spoke out. Like Ally Raisman, her name recognition and accomplishments will help this be taken more seriously. It’s a shame that is the way things work but it’s true.

 

[MsZem]

Good for Ashley for coming forward. It must have been so hard to be assaulted and then to have to remain in the small skating community that Coughlin was a (respected) part of.

 

[supergirl573]

It’s crazy how so many lept to defend him. He was a mediocre skater and when he retired he was either a mediocre coach or he coached mediocre skaters.

 

[Wyliefan]

Oh dear Lord. Poor Ashley.

 

[UGG]

Wow. I just started crying reading this. Poor Ashley.

 

[antmanb]

All of the other skaters who came out to defend the pervert can’t say sh*t because Ashley is more successful than them.

It’s crazy how so many lept to defend him. He was a mediocre skater and when he retired he was either a mediocre coach or he coached mediocre skaters.

Are you a teenager? These ridiculously petty insults about the success of any party should not even come into the serious discussion about sexual assault or the changes needed to the skating federations. You might be better to focus on the issues instead of these schoolyard comments.

I think Ashley is incredibly brave for speaking out and I hope she's protected from trolls who will no doubt attack her.

 

[hoptoad]

Good for Ashley for telling her story.

I hope at some point she elaborates on her conversation with USFS and how they responded to her proposals. From the article:

This year I watched a phenomenal young superstar, Alysa Liu, become the U.S. figure skating national champion at 13. It was in that moment that I knew I had to come forward with my story. I want to make this sport safer for those kids. I went to U.S. Figure Skating and proposed changes to athlete education and wellness designed to keep these young skaters as safe as possible.

 

[clairecloutier]

An accompanying article explains the many valid reasons why people delay reporting sexual assaults.

Why it took Ashley Wagner a decade to talk about her sexual assault

Olympic figure skater Ashley Wagner tells USA TODAY Sports she was sexually assaulted by the late John Coughlin in June 2008.

www.usatoday.com

 

[UGG]

Hopefully others will come forward now that Ashley has. I guess the “jealous rival”, “Romeo and Juliet” and “third party” rumors can all die now.

 

[MsZem]

Ashley's post on her Instagram:

Login • Instagram

Welcome back to Instagram. Sign in to check out what your friends, family & interests have been capturing & sharing around the world.

www.instagram.com

The responses so far are all supportive, as they should be. Kaitlyn Weaver is the first skater that I saw in the replies.

ETA - also Kiira Korpi, who wrote this: "Dear Ashley, thank you for your courage to speak up and efforts to make our sport more safe. I’m sorry what you had to go through... Sending much love and gratitude❤"

 

[oleada]

Holy shit. Poor Ashley. I’m glad she spoke up ; it takes a lot of courage. I’m glad she’s also working to make other kids safer.

 

[personwhoishere]

First and foremost, Ashley sharing her story is so courageous and it's wonderful that she's adding action to words and actively working to protect the next generation of skaters.

As a secondary side note, I'm curious how skaters/others in the skating community who previously defended and posted lengthy tributes to him will respond, if at all. It's so hard to reconcile someone we knew and loved as having been abusive. Ashley's point about people being/seeming "nice" and "doing all the right things" still having the capacity to be abusive is so important to make note of. The reason so many people get away with it is because they present so well publicly. I think it would be especially important/impactful for those people to acknowledge that.

 

[UGG]

If he was crawling around in Ashley’s bed, I’m sure this wasn’t a one time thing for him. So disgusting. What a coward.

 

[AYS]

An accompanying article explains the many valid reasons why people delay reporting sexual assaults.

Why it took Ashley Wagner a decade to talk about her sexual assault

Olympic figure skater Ashley Wagner tells USA TODAY Sports she was sexually assaulted by the late John Coughlin in June 2008.

www.usatoday.com

One other point not addressed in that piece is a young person, while experiencing the negative impact of the assault, e.g., shame, fear, right away, can't sufficiently understand or articulate to themselves that what happened was assault until later, with the benefit of more information, education, and distance from the event.

 

[ilovepaydays]

All of the other skaters who came out to defend the pervert can’t say sh*t because Ashley is more successful than them.

How successful her skating career was should have nothing to do with whether she should be believed. Even if she had never qualified for U.S. Nationals, Sectionals, or Regionals. Or never mastered single jumps. Her story should be the only thing that people should consider.

 

[BlueRidge]

I stand with Ashley!

 

[supergirl573]

How successful her skating career was should have nothing to do with whether she should be believed. Even if she had never qualified for U.S. Nationals, Sectionals, or Regionals. Her story should be the only thing that people should consider.

It shouldn’t, but his defenders were saying the accusations were sabotage over a commentating position and given Ashley’s career, she would get more offers than Coughlin would have.

Are you a teenager? These ridiculously petty insults about the success of any party should not even come into the serious discussion about sexual assault or the changes needed to the skating federations. You might be better to focus on the issues instead of these schoolyard comments.

I think Ashley is incredibly brave for speaking out and I hope she's protected from trolls who will no doubt attack her.

I’m not a teenager, but Coughlin’s family and some of his online defenders made the argument that the accusers were no name skater who were jealous. Now it came out that the accuser was much more successful than Coughlin was, that argument has been thrown out.

 

[Rukia]

I can already hear the excuses people are going to make for him or against her, but it doesn't matter. What happened was assault and should never have happened. I support Ashley, and Bridget, and everyone else who had this happen.

 

[once_upon]

If I read it right, she told 2 people soon after it happened and one confirmed her account.
Not that should make a difference in being believed, but to those who say she should have reported it - she did.

 

[supergirl573]

When Coughlin’s camp said that the accusations were from some one playing dirty to win a job, I thought they were deflecting. In hindsight, they were trying to out Ashley because she was commentating.

 

[Enchanted]

It’s great Ashley had courage to talk about the issue. However, it makes me sad her experiences were needed in order people to take the abuse seriously. If only people would have been as supportive to Namiotka.

 

[Wyliefan]

When Coughlin’s camp said that the accusations were from some one playing dirty to win a job, I thought they were deflecting. In hindsight, they were trying to out Ashley because she was commentating.

Oh gosh, you're right. That hadn't dawned on me.

It just makes the whole accusation even more ridiculous. As if Ashley would have needed to smear someone to get that job.

 

[Lanie]

Ashley's point about someone being a good person or you think they are is really an excellent one.

And USFSA ignoring the conditions that makes things like this possible--the parties (where were the adults?! the coaches, the minders, the people supposed to look out for these kids?!), the age gaps, where imo the older skaters are not mature or responsible like actual adults and therefore create situations like this, then USFSA ignoring it...is infuriating. I hope Ashley's recommendations to USFSA are looked into. We have a lot of young people in this sport who are not protected, both girls and boys, from this sort of thing happening because the federation doesn't give a fcuk. They only care about results. As I assume most sports organizations do, sadly.

I'm glad she spoke up.

 

[RoseRed]

When Coughlin’s camp said that the accusations were from some one playing dirty to win a job, I thought they were deflecting. In hindsight, they were trying to out Ashley because she was commentating.

She wasn't one of the accusations reported at the time though. She said she spoke to the USFS in February. And it explicitly says in the article:

USA TODAY Sports, citing a person with knowledge of the situation, reported in January that SafeSport received three reports of sexual assault against Coughlin. His death effectively ended the investigation into those reports, SafeSport announced in February.

While Namiotka is one of those cases, Wagner’s allegation is not.

 

[supergirl573]

She wasn't one of the accusations reported at the time though. She said she spoke to the USFS in February. And it explicitly says in the article:

No, but the mention of the commentating job makes me think that they knew about Ashley, possibly from the people cashew confided in.