SafeSport alleges "culture of grooming and abuse" in U.S. figure skating

[VGThuy]

The more time that has passed, when you think about all the hideous things Coughlin supporters did these past years, the more disgusting it all is, and it was plenty disgusting at the time it was all happening. I get those who didn’t know that side of Coughlin were grieving but that doesn’t excuse some of their horrific and insensitive behavior towards his victims who were brave enough to come forward probably know how many in the skating world were going to attack them.

I’ll never forget Delilah’s shenanigans with the red hats and her other outrageous behavior.

 

[Willin]

One of my biggest disappointments from the skating world is how so many skaters didn't believe Bridget when she came forward and only "bothered" to believe the truth about JC once Ashley Wagner was brave enough to go public with what he did to her. There's a big group of skaters I will never look at the same for their hypocrisy of only believing the skater who is better known (and for some a friend) and not the woman who was paired with him for two years and was so brave to be the first to go public. May she rest in peace, truly heartbreaking.

The article mentioned a struggle with drugs, and people don't tend to believe drug users - even though most of the women I've met use drugs to try to avoid or deal with traumatic circumstances. I wonder if that played a role... But I do think a huge reason people listened to Ashley (beyond her bigger name) is that she is someone known for getting herself in hot water with USFS for airing their dirty laundry or saying the things USFS doesn't want said. Even behind the scenes she's made moves to help other athletes. She wasn't going to take this lying down, and because of that USFS and the local clubs protecting Coughlin knew they would be in a lot more hot water if they didn't do something.

But I do wish that USFS was more self aware. They took forever to do anything about the pair's program in CS with Dalilah and TJ. They had Coughlin going to many camps and teaching many kids - not to mention doing commentary on IceNetwork. Still USFS doesn't acknowledge their role in this mess or apologize.

 

[Amy L]

The article mentioned a struggle with drugs, and people don't tend to believe drug users - even though most of the women I've met use drugs to try to avoid or deal with traumatic circumstances. I wonder if that played a role... But I do think a huge reason people listened to Ashley (beyond her bigger name) is that she is someone known for getting herself in hot water with USFS for airing their dirty laundry or saying the things USFS doesn't want said.

That might be part of it. Abuse victims are treated like crap, they self-medicate, drug addicts get treated like crap, they get caught in a cycle of re-traumatizing themselves and re-upping their substance intake to deal.

But Tara Modlin et al said that one of the accusers was "just jealous" and was trying to take Coughlin's commentating job. Ashley was/is a bigger name than John was so it couldn't have been her. She didn't need to take anything from anyone, she's a World medalist and an Olympian. I also don't think that sounds like Bridget, she was a former junior pair skater with no name recognition outside of the very online uberfans. afaik she wasn't working towards a broadcasting career either. Maybe there was another possible victim who they thought might come out who was closer to John's level and tried to get ahead of the story. Or they were just outright lying (which is very possible).

Bridget was failed on a million different levels. I hope she's found peace somewhere out there, she deserved better than what she got on Earth.

 

[Willin]

@Amy L I would bet she was talking about Ashley. While Ashley is more well known for sure, John was much more well liked by USFS (like I said, he was one of their go-to skating camp special guests; Ashley was their black sheep they were all too happy to dump) and was already an established commentator when Ashley was competing. At the time of the accusations, Ashley had had one or two guest commentary spots, but nothing like she did at the Olympics in 2022. And honestly Tara, like most people connected with USFS's old guard, probably hated Ashley well before the accusations came out.

 

[tony]

The story Modlin was throwing around about someone jealous over a commentary job was not one of the victims, nor was it a reason in said person encouraging others (who were known victims) to come forward. She was trying to do damage control both behind the scenes and publicly with this ‘story’ and speaking about Bridget in such manner. Trash.

As far as Ashley coming forward and people starting to believe it- that’s true. I commented way back when that I had been ‘placed’ into a John Coughlin support group on Facebook following the suicide and the minute Ashley came forward, that group got incredibly silent and stopped with their stories of how he never could’ve done such a thing.

 

[Trillian]

@Amy L I would bet she was talking about Ashley. While Ashley is more well known for sure, John was much more well liked by USFS (like I said, he was one of their go-to skating camp special guests; Ashley was their black sheep they were all too happy to dump) and was already an established commentator when Ashley was competing. At the time of the accusations, Ashley had had one or two guest commentary spots, but nothing like she did at the Olympics in 2022. And honestly Tara, like most people connected with USFS's old guard, probably hated Ashley well before the accusations came out.

While I don’t disagree with your logic here, I thought the comment about the commentary job was made very soon after John’s death. I might be remembering wrong, but I thought when Ashley went public about her experience, she said that she had not been part of the Safe Sport investigation. It didn’t seem like her story was widely known in general. If Ashley wasn’t talking at that point, it would be very interesting if there was being shade thrown in her direction anyway. But maybe I have the timeline mixed up. I also don’t know who else that comment would be referencing, but I’m not sure it really had any basis in reality.

The news about Bridget is heartbreaking. I never heard a thing about Coughlin until the news about him went public, but I am aware of multiple other credible stories about abuse and sexual assault by male pairs skaters in the last 20ish years that were ignored or carefully kept quiet. Bridget was one of many girls who were failed by people who should have protected and supported them. This is a systemic issue in skating, it has happened over and over again, and it will continue to happen as long as people in the sport dismiss the victims and celebrate their abusers. Bridget deserved so much better from the skating community, both when she was younger and during the last few years.

 

[Ena Grins]

This is so heartbreaking for Bridget, her family and loved ones, and other survivors and victims out there. I hope the other survivors can find support and healing.

US Figure Skating (and the ISU, this entire sport) has such a long way to go in reckoning with the culture of abuse that's been not only allowed but encouraged in the sport. I'll also never forget or forgive Delilah and the red hats at Nationals.

 

[her grace]

We need a lot more education and support for the after-effects of abuse. Too many people see a girl engaging in risky behaviors and think that calls into question her account of abuse. To quote Oprah's new book, if you're wondering "What's wrong with you?", you should really be asking "What happened to you?" because often what you're seeing is a response to trauma.

 

[Evgeniafan]

The more time that has passed, when you think about all the hideous things Coughlin supporters did these past years, the more disgusting it all is, and it was plenty disgusting at the time it was all happening. I get those who didn’t know that side of Coughlin were grieving but that doesn’t excuse some of their horrific and insensitive behavior towards his victims who were brave enough to come forward probably know how many in the skating world were going to attack them.

I’ll never forget Delilah’s shenanigans with the red hats and her other outrageous behavior. It

She's disgusting.

 

[Evgeniafan]

One of my biggest disappointments from the skating world is how so many skaters didn't believe Bridget when she came forward and only "bothered" to believe the truth about JC once Ashley Wagner was brave enough to go public with what he did to her. There's a big group of skaters I will never look at the same for their hypocrisy of only believing the skater who is better known (and for some a friend) and not the woman who was paired with him for two years and was so brave to be the first to go public. May she rest in peace, truly heartbreaking.

I totally agree with this post.

 

[Lacey]

She's disgusting.

Is Delilah still coaching, and if so, who and where?

 

[overedge]

I thought Dalilah was suspended while the SafeSport investigation was going on, but she's listed as a coach for private lessons at this rink https://www.iiacol.com/iiacstaff

(look on the sheet with prices/info at the bottom of the section with the coach photos)

 

[Vagabond]

I thought Dalilah was suspended while the SafeSport investigation was going on, but she's listed as a coach for private lessons at this rink https://www.iiacol.com/iiacstaff

(look on the sheet with prices/info at the bottom of the section with the coach photos)

Maybe it's out of date.

TJ Nyman is listed too.

 

[overedge]

Maybe it's out-of-date.

TJ Nyman is listed too.

Unfortunately it's not out of date. I just looked at the home page and it has a calendar of events for October 2022. And Dalilah is listed there as one of the two main contacts for the program

Home

www.iiacol.com

 

[Lanie]

Goddamn it USFSA get it together

They just don't give a fcuk about the safety of their athletes, do they?

 

[Amy L]

Goddamn it USFSA get it together

They just don't give a fcuk about the safety of their athletes, do they?

No, they seem to spoil all of their pair boys to keep them in, girls must seem completely dispensable to them. The Finster mom, who was responsible for the red hat scheme, briefly posted here. I remember when Finster/Nagy had an iffy LP at a JGP event she was rabidly defending HIM with almost nothing to say about her own daughter.

 

[Aaron MB Fan]

TJ Nyman is listed too.

TJ has been posting tons of IG stories of him coaching minors at the International Ice Academy of Colorado.

The International Ice Academy of Colorado also has a lot of IG content showing TJ coaching and continue to have comments on all posts limited likely due to ongoing backlash from employing TJ.

 

[Theatregirl1122]

Isn't there a limit to what USFSA controls/can limit?

 

[Vagabond]

 

[overedge]

I looked on the SafeSport website and this is what Dalilah's listing says for "temporary restrictions": "Travel / Lodging Restriction(s), Coaching / Training Restriction(s), Contact / Communication Limitation(s), No Contact Directive(s)".

IIRC someone posted on here when the restrictions were first put in place that she wasn't allowed to coach without another coach being present during the lesson, and wasn't permitted to be alone with an athlete while at the rink. And the "contact/communication limitations" and "no contact directives" were added to the restrictions after the SafeSport investigation was underway.

It doesn't seem like a smart move to have someone with this kind of public record as one of the primary contacts for a skating program....

 

[Karen-W]

I looked on the SafeSport website and this is what Dalilah's listing says for "temporary restrictions": "Travel / Lodging Restriction(s), Coaching / Training Restriction(s), Contact / Communication Limitation(s), No Contact Directive(s)".

IIRC someone posted on here when the restrictions were first put in place that she wasn't allowed to coach without another coach being present during the lesson, and wasn't permitted to be alone with an athlete while at the rink. And the "contact/communication limitations" and "no contact directives" were added to the restrictions after the SafeSport investigation was underway.

It doesn't seem like a smart move to have someone with this kind of public record as one of the primary contacts for a skating program....

Perhaps someone should drop SafeSport and the USFS an email inquiring about what "Contact/Communication Limitations" and "No Contact Directives" mean exactly.

 

[Lacey]

Perhaps someone should drop SafeSport and the USFS an email inquiring about what "Contact/Communication Limitations" and "No Contact Directives" mean exactly.

YES, PLEASE!!!

 

[Vagabond]

SafeSport Report a Concern (Email or 24-Hour Hotline)

Operators are standing by.

 

[overedge]

FWIW someone mentioned at the time the contact/communication restrictions were added that this usually only happens when the subject of the SafeSport investigation has been, er, um, reaching out to complainants or potential witnesses.

 

[Willin]

Isn't there a limit to what USFSA controls/can limit?

AFAIK USFS has no control over who rinks hire unless the rink has a USFS LTS program that would be required to follow SafeSport. In addition, for someone like TJ with no restrictions, they can't even really stop them when they do have control.

There are plenty of lesser known rinks who couldn't care or may be so out of the loop they wouldn't even know. Many of these rinks may be primarily ISI rinks, and others may be run by hockey teams or with administrators all pulled from local hockey programs. And frankly there's no one to regulate who they hire or how much due diligence they should have unless it's something that would show up on a background check. Well, they could get sued after the fact, but that's probably not a big enough threat. Not to mention there will always be crazy parents perfectly happy to have their kid work with a predator if it gets them a medal - and rinks/programs that specifically cater to these crazy patients. Oh, and many rinks hire people that are not exactly amazing since it's a pretty niche field. I regularly saw rink drunk and/or high on the job - we even saw a drunk guy drive the zamboni, reported it, and wouldn't you know it he still showed up the next week extremely high.

That being said, USFS messed up with how they handled the Dalilah situation and are still messing up with TJ. They protected both of them (and others) for so long even though there was no real reason to protect them. You could say they wanted to protect her as a top pair's coach - but her teams still weren't winning much internationally and USFS has other a few other pair's coaches with similar records they ignored or actively worked against at the time to prop her up. Or you could say it's a Tom Z situation where USFS wouldn't dare dumping her because she's friends with all of them. But also neither one is an excuse. I would say fire everyone who covered up the CS pair's situation, but they're mostly all gone on their own by now and will likely be remembered and memorialized by USFS's current and future admin for eternity.

 

[emilieh]

I saw TJ coaching at a competition in Colorado in the spring. I have not been at another competition in the area since then, so can't comment on anything more current. From what I remember, he was coaching skaters at lower levels (lower than juvenile). Dalilah was not there. She was at this competition in 2021. Can't speak to intent/availability/whatever, just stating what I witnessed.

 

[Willin]

@emilieh Ugh. I heard someone had made a complaint against him to SafeSport. I wonder what the status is. Unfortunately until SafeSport issues some sort of measures (temporary or not) he can't be banned from anything without risking a lawsuit.

 

[overedge]

@emilieh Ugh. I heard someone had made a complaint against him to SafeSport. I wonder what the status is. Unfortunately until SafeSport issues some sort of measures (temporary or not) he can't be banned from anything without risking a lawsuit.

I really wish SafeSport had the authority to ban someone as soon as a valid complaint was filed (valid = worthy of further investigation). Everyone has the right to a fair hearing, but it makes me sick to think of what kind of behaviour might be going on between a complaint being filed and a suspension being issued. If SafeSport had more investigators and more resources, the cases could be investigated more quickly and actions taken a lot sooner.

 

[2sk8]

If SafeSport had more investigators and more resources, the cases could be investigated more quickly and actions taken a lot sooner.

This part of your comment is so important and necessary, and would really help with getting these complaints promptly and properly addressed. But, I also think it is important to remember that we live in a society where one is supposed to be innocent until proven guilty. While these are "administrative cases," an immediate ban takes away someone's ability to make a living, thoroughly impugns their reputation, obviously assumes they are guilty, and totally destroys their career.

This is no way supports those involved in the whole CS fiasco - they are vile. I am simply saying that we ought to remember that it is possible to file a complaint and for the accused to be innocent. They also shouldn't suffer more because of the complete inadequacy and ineptness of SafeSport AND USFS. Neither of these organizations give a rat's arse about athletes, female or male, as far as I can tell, unless said athletes are one of the chosen few. Everyone else is just a source of funds.

 

[5Ali3]

Perhaps someone should drop SafeSport and the USFS an email inquiring about what "Contact/Communication Limitations" and "No Contact Directives" mean exactly.

"No contact directives" prohibit any form of communication through any medium with a specific individual during an investigation. They aren't the same as legal restraining orders; the parties are allowed to be in the same physical space, but are instructed to avoid each other and not speak to each other. There can be multiple no contact directives in a single case but each directive specifically prohibits communication with a named individual. It's not a blanket prohibition like "Don't contact any former students."

"Contact/communication limits" prohibit one-on-one or unsupervised interactions outside of in-person coaching. For example, general SafeSport policy requires coaches to copy another adult on any text/DM sent to a minor athlete. This restriction can require that a coach copy another adult on any text/DM sent to any athlete, including athletes over the age of 18.

Goddamn it USFSA get it together

They just don't give a fcuk about the safety of their athletes, do they?

Sappenfield is under investigation by the U.S. Center for SafeSport. Federal law prohibits USFS from enacting additional restrictions on participation once the Center for SafeSport has accepted jurisdiction over a case. This is a major flaw in the SafeSport law, especially with how long it takes SafeSport to conduct investigations.

But Tara Modlin et al said that one of the accusers was "just jealous" and was trying to take Coughlin's commentating job. Ashley was/is a bigger name than John was so it couldn't have been her. She didn't need to take anything from anyone, she's a World medalist and an Olympian. I also don't think that sounds like Bridget, she was a former junior pair skater with no name recognition outside of the very online uberfans. afaik she wasn't working towards a broadcasting career either. Maybe there was another possible victim who they thought might come out who was closer to John's level and tried to get ahead of the story. Or they were just outright lying (which is very possible).

Please do not speculate about the identities of victims, witnesses, or third party reporters. This type of comment and public speculation is a reason why many people decline to participate in SafeSport investigations.

What difference does it make who Modlin was referencing? Does the identity of the person referenced make Modlin's comment more or less appropriate? What would you do with the information, give credence to her comment by speculating about the referenced person's internal motivations with no information about what those are because that person hasn't spoken publicly? Can you see how that ties back to these types of "analyses" being a reason why people within the very small skating community decline to participate in SafeSport investigations?

Disparaging the motivations of the victim or third party reporter is almost ubiquitous when allegations of assault or abuse are made. It's straight out of the abuser playbook. It's intended to cast doubt on the allegation, harm the reputation of the victim/third party reporter and silence others from coming forward because they see what will be done to them. Please don't give that tactic power.

I really wish SafeSport had the authority to ban someone as soon as a valid complaint was filed (valid = worthy of further investigation). Everyone has the right to a fair hearing, but it makes me sick to think of what kind of behaviour might be going on between a complaint being filed and a suspension being issued. If SafeSport had more investigators and more resources, the cases could be investigated more quickly and actions taken a lot sooner.

The Center for SafeSport does have the authority to "ban" (suspend) someone as soon as they read the complaint and accept jurisdiction. It's called a "temporary suspension" and prohibits all participation in all aspects of sport sanctioned by all governing bodies under the jurisdiction of USOPC. A temporary suspension can also be issued at any point in an investigation.

Since most ice time in the U.S. is run directly by rinks, not through USFS clubs, both temporary and permanent suspensions generally mean that coaches can continue to coach even when "banned" by SafeSport; they just can't coach at USFS-sanctioned events like competitions. In other sports in which practices are held by clubs/teams directly sanctioned by the USOPC governing body, a SafeSport ban doesn't prevents a banned coach from coaching teams under other governing bodies: a volleyball coach banned by SafeSport can't coach a U.S.A. Volleyball club team but can coach an AAU, NCAA, or high school team.

SafeSport isn't a panacea that magically protects athletes from abusive coaches, unfortunately. That doesn't excuse SafeSport's many massive failings, but it means SafeSport is only one tool in a much larger battle to reduce and prevent abuse in sports.