PUBLISHED: DEC 10, 2020
In recent months, gymnasts worldwide broke their silence over a culture of tolerating abuse. The release of Netflix documentary Athlete A and the #GymnastAlliance movement this year played a big role in emboldening athletes to come forward.
Athlete A details how former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar sexually abused hundreds of girls and young women, and how the association hid his crimes. He’s now in prison for the rest of his life.
In Singapore, athletes spoke up about abuse too. Gymnast Kathryn Chia posted online about her coaches’ comments about her body.
She posted how she and 15 other local gymnasts struggled with body image issues on her website, ApotheKathryn.
At 14, Kathryn’s daily diet comprised six grapes for breakfast, 20 baby spinach leaves and three mushrooms for lunch, and half a cup of milk for dinner.
Another Singapore gymnast ate one fruit a day out of fear she would be punished by her coach for not losing weight.
National artistic swimmer Debbie Soh said she felt a lot of pressure to lose weight due to the aesthetic nature of her sport.
DEBBIE SOH, ON A COACH WHO’S NO LONGER WITH THE NATIONAL TEAM
Former Singapore national figure skater Yu Shuran revealed she was abused by her coach.
The 2017 SEA Games gold medallist said that during a training camp in China, she had been driven to a secluded area and dragged out of the car for a beating as punishment.
Since going public with her account, Yu received messages from athletes in and outside skating about how they related to her story.
Sport Singapore aims to have at least one trained safeguarding officer in each national sports association by the end of this year, and double this number by the end of next year.
PRODUCED BY: DENISE CHONG