Cipres accused of sexual misconduct

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skatfan

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Statement is included in Brennan's latest tweet:

Well of course they haven't been contacted yet - the investigation will conclude with interviews with them, they will contact everyone else first.
 

Sasha'sSpins

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To most disturbing aspect of the story is the coaches' behavior. And the fact that their threats materialized. The girl is the one in therapy and out of the sport.

This makes me so angry for her. Apart from criminal charges that will hopefully be pursued, I hope the victim is able to sue for damages and wins a boatload. Money won't bring back her skating career but hopefully it will make her way forward a little easier. 😢
 

ЭPiKUilyam

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Wow.

The only thing that seems so strange here is Sylvia Fontana and John Zimmerman being so corrupt like this.

I am glad this is being taken seriously.

Why is it strange to you? They are relatively new skating coaches and had an Olympic level team that could get their names out there and build their reputation. Just because both are or were pretty doesn't suggest that they wouldn't engage in corrupt or illegal behavior.
 

Sparks

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Well of course they haven't been contacted yet - the investigation will conclude with interviews with them, they will contact everyone else first.
Yes, Brennan tweeted this:
"A few thoughts on this statement: They have not yet been contacted by SafeSport because SS has just begun its investigation. They will be contacted in due time. As for saying there are no claims against them, there are most definitely claims against them."
 

Lanie

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Why is it strange to you? They are relatively new skating coaches and had an Olympic level team that could get their names out there and build their reputation. Just because both are or were pretty doesn't suggest that they wouldn't engage in corrupt or illegal behavior.

Ha, like it has to do with them being attractive. How f*cking petty of you to assume. I have spent time around them. I know people who know them well. That kind of behavior is shocking and horrifying from people I thought--we all thought--were decent human beings.
 

alchemy void

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I really have nothing to add that already hasn't been said here already.

My heart goes out to the victim, not only for Cipres' misconduct, but for the abuse and grooming she endured at the rink.

And like others have mentioned, we're definitely not even getting the full story here.

I agree with @Michalle; I can't help but feel disdain and disgust for the sport right now. Based on the actions of Dispenza, Zimmerman, and Fontana I really question how systematic this abusive culture permeates the sport.

Wow, this is the most shocking thing to come out yet. I am starting to really regret getting back into this sport at all around the 2018 Olympics. That's not even connected to the WADA thing, it is something I've been thinking about for awhile.
 

Colonel Green

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I agree with @Michalle; I can't help but feel disdain and disgust for the sport right now. Based on the actions of Dispenza, Zimmerman, and Fontana I really question how systematic this abusive culture permeates the sport.
In defense of the sport/indictment of humans in general, I don't think figure skating's institutions are any more or less prone to this than others. Pretty much every sports culture has its own abuse scandals in one form or another; it just feels like we're really getting around to dealing with skating, after things like the atom bomb that obliterated USA Gymnastics.
 

Lanie

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I think systemic abuse is in every sport and I am so glad it is being washed out and found out, but I fear it won't change the culture of skating, or gym, or the multitude of other sports where abuse is prevalent. There will always be horrible, scummy people such as Cipres who would send dick pics to a child (or send dick pics at all, I find it so gross people do this but maybe I'm a prude?). I hope the victim is doing alright with her family and therapist surrounding her with love and I hope her family knows fans like us support them too. It won't do anything to fix it but knowing there is support there--and having Christine Brennan continually bang this drum so maybe USFS stops being cowards...
 

wickedwitch

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thank you Sylvia.
the coaches deny everything which involve them. no mention of their pupil.
it's a business matter for them, they probably have lawyers who have already thought of a strategy. they may come up with this. the evidence about the pervert appears to be clear. they'll wash hands of him. he's going to stay in France anyway. they could somehow prove that Zimmerman is being framed for pressuring the girl, they could whine about some "unknown party" who wants to ruin his career, taking advantage of the pervert's shit to tear down him and his skaters. (they have a new male champion now.) something like what Coughlin's parents said in that infamous interview. they immediately tried to paint themselves as the "shocked" victims of false allegations.
no one will be able to identify the unknown party. they can save face by repeating this over and over. the pervert will take all the blame, will not be prosecuted and everything will be silenced.
i don't know. i'm just bleeding for this story and deeply ashamed to be italian like Fontana right now.
Unless someone can confirm that Fontana and/or Zimmerman knew, I can't see any suspension sticking.

I'm trying to come up with a scenario that they truly didn't know, and the only remotely plausible explanation is that the girl lied to her parents about telling them, because, at the time, she didn't want to pursue an investigation. And even that seems incredibly farfetched.
 

ЭPiKUilyam

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Ha, like it has to do with them being attractive. How f*cking petty of you to assume. I have spent time around them. I know people who know them well. That kind of behavior is shocking and horrifying from people I thought--we all thought--were decent human beings.

Pretty as in pretty skaters. For all the attention Silvia got considering her middling placements, it didn't make sense except she was a pretty skater. Also, sometimes seemingly 'decent' people do wrong things to advance themselves and careers. They were confronted with doing the right thing (and legal thing) and chose to advance their interests instead. Happens all the time. Let's not get bogged down on one word, okay?
 

Nmsis

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Back to the topic, this person says:
https://twitter.com/JudgeThree/status/1204425315948343296?s=20
So unless the French Fed opens an investigation, Cipres might get away? I am not sure.
It depends on what you're talking about.

On a criminal level, only a legal system can issue a judgment. Ciprès might be sued in the US, sued in France and the decisions might or might not be applied if he doesn't stay there.

On a sport level, Ciprès could be punished by his federation if he aspires to a future position, which depends on the legal decision as the french federation has no investigation power and is actually much to thin to have any.

But in France, you have another level. As soon as you're working with minors (which is the case of most of the skating coaches), you enter the zone of the Code de l'action sociale et des familles and of the Protection des Mineurs. To work around kids, you must go through the whole Jeunesse et Sports process. And the very first step is the checking of your penal record. If you have anything on it, from a speeding ticket to a public intoxication, your file will be rejected and you won't be authorized to work with kids. And even if your record is clean, if there is a doubt, there might be an administrative inquiry with very large powers (including the checking of foreign informations), which result won't be made public, but may put you on the list of forbidden persons and may bar you forever from working with minor kids. That's how the coach of a french olympian got banned from coaching some 20 years ago while he remained close to the top of the federation and close to figure skating. He wasn't sentenced, he wasn't removed by his federation, but he wasn't allowed to work with underage people anymore. So his coaching career died.

So I don't know what awaits Morgan Ciprès but if he ever sent a dickpic to a kid, as this won't be a discreet thing he'll be able to conceal from the people of the Jeunesse et Sports administration, I very much doubt he'll ever be allowed to work with kids in France and a coaching career will therefore be very difficult to sustain. So I wouldn't say he might get away.
 
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AxelAnnie

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As if most of this board didn't already know, you are despicable. Hate to be a man right now? I would hate to be the 13-year old girl who received unsolicited dick pics from someone I trained with. Way to go, defending a probable predator.

You read funny. I most certainly did not defend anyone. Wouldn't we all hate (no mater the age) to receive any kind of dick pics from anyone!
 

cholla

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deeply ashamed to be italian like Fontana right now.
You should not. If she is proven to be a greedy bytch, it won't have anything to do with her being Italian. And everything to do with the fact she is a heartless witch who sacrificed the well being of a child to her own interests. I'm not ashamed to be French because of Cipres. Normal French men don't send dick pix to underage girls (or to anyone for the matter). You're not more responsible for Fontana's appalling behavior than I am for Cipres being an a$$hole.
 

BaileyCatts

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Yes, Brennan tweeted this:
"A few thoughts on this statement: They have not yet been contacted by SafeSport because SS has just begun its investigation. They will be contacted in due time. As for saying there are no claims against them, there are most definitely claims against them."


Okay I hate to keep being stupid but ..... so Christine says they haven't been contacted by SS yet because it has 'just begun' its investigation. The article states it was reported to SS on August 10. That was f-o-u-r months ago. Why are they 'just beginning' the investigation now .... f-o-u-r months later? What have they been doing the last 4 months since this was first reported if they have only 'just begun' their investigation?
 

AxelAnnie

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It depends on what you're talking about.

On a criminal level, only a legal system can issue a judgment. Ciprès might be sued in the US, sued in France and the decisions might or might not be applied if he doesn't stay there.

On a sport level, Ciprès could be punished by his federation if he aspires to a future position, which depends on the legal decision as the french federation has no investigation power and is actually much to thin to have any.

But in France, you have another level. As soon as you're working with minors (which is the case of most of the skating coaches), you enter the zone of the Code de l'action sociale et des familles and of the Protection des Mineurs. To work around kids, you must go through the whole Jeunesse et Sports process. And the very first step is the checking of your penal record. If you have anything on it, from a speeding ticket to a public intoxication, your file will be rejected and you won't be authorized to work with kids. And even if your record is clean, if there is a doubt, there might be an administrative inquiry with very large powers (including the checking of foreign informations), which result won't be made public, but may put you on the list of forbidden persons and may bar you forever from working with minor kids. That's how the coach of a french olympian got banned from coaching some 20 years ago while he remained close to the top of the federation and close to figure skating. He wasn't sentenced, he wasn't removed by his federation, but he wasn't allowed to work with underage people anymore. So his coaching career died.

So I don't know what awaits Morgan Ciprès but if he ever sent a dickpic to a kid, as this won't be a discreet thing he'll be able to conceal from the people of the Jeunesse et Sports administration, I very much doubt he'll ever be allowed to work with kids in France and a coaching career will therefore be very difficult to sustain. So I wouldn't say he might get away.

G-d bless the French. A country with a brain. :)
 

canbelto

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Totally not an excuse but Zimmerman and Fontana had a coaching rink that blew up in a short time period when they got Cipres/James and Zoe and Nick. So with that comes more money, more pressure. Months leading up to the Olympics are incredible pressure cookers. So when confronted with this they chose to protect their stars rather than do the right thing. Very disappointing.
 

puglover

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I can't help but think of the age of the alleged victim - 13. I have grandchildren around that age and to think of what this young woman has had to go through is heartbreaking and it has only just begun. If trusted adults actually did threaten her with repercussions if she were to report this, they should have the book thrown at them.
 

Orm Irian

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I have spent time around them. I know people who know them well. That kind of behavior is shocking and horrifying from people I thought--we all thought--were decent human beings.

I'm very sorry, Lanie. You must feel so betrayed.
 

BaileyCatts

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I didn't say they were! When I read the article that said it was reported on August 10, I wondered why it has taken 4 months to even start doing something about it. @mpal2 politely answered my question that they are understaffed, which I had no clue about. To me it seemed like nothing was being done until this story broke, which I now see is not the case.
 

Carolla5501

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Okay I hate to keep being stupid but ..... so Christine says they haven't been contacted by SS yet because it has 'just begun' its investigation. The article states it was reported to SS on August 10. That was f-o-u-r months ago. Why are they 'just beginning' the investigation now .... f-o-u-r months later? What have they been doing the last 4 months since this was first reported if they have only 'just begun' their investigation?

Because they are not a true enforcement agency. These kind of investigation should be done by trained a law enforcement officials. I’m fortunate we are doing is allowing this bizarre organization to do them.
I’m totally unimpressed with safe sport and the more I hear the less impressed I am. If I had a child who was abused I’ll be calling my local police and district attorney.Putting an abuser in jail is a much more effective way of getting them out of the coaching system
 
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