By Lori Ewing
MANCHESTER, England, Oct 19 (Reuters) – Gymnastics is still failing athletes in “almost every way” despite reforms introduced in the decade since the Larry Nassar abuse scandal, the judge who sentenced the former USA Gymnastics doctor has told Reuters.
Judge Rosemarie Aquilina said changes made by governing bodies around the world amounted largely to “window dressing” and that athletes remained fearful that speaking out could cost them their place in the sport.
“I think it’s failing in almost every way,” Aquilina said.
“I think that what they’ve done across the world is window dressing to say, ‘Look at us, look what we’ve done so well’, and they’re still not being accountable for the things that they’re not doing.
“Safety is a human right and yet these athletes still feel that they don’t have it because the sport they love will go away if they complain about anything and so we haven’t come far enough at all.
“I don’t think we’re going to see a change in my lifetime. I think it’s going to take decades,” she added.
World Gymnastics and USA Gymnastics were not immediately available to comment.
Aquilina was speaking at an event organised by Gymnasts for Change International in Rotterdam in conjunction with the world championships to assess progress made on athlete welfare since the judge sent Nassar to jail for up to 175 years for sexually abusing young female gymnasts who were entrusted to his care.
Nassar was sentenced following an extraordinary week-long hearing in which 160 of his victims, most of whom were minors at the time they were abused, unflinchingly told their stories.
MEASURABLE PROGRESS
Minky Worden of Human Rights Watch said there had been measurable progress in giving athletes a voice and providing ways for them to report abuse in the decade since Nassar was charged.
“When the first whistleblowers came forward in gymnastics, not just in the United States, but all over the world, in Germany, in the UK, and other places, they were retaliated against,” said Worden, who also spoke at the Rotterdam event.
“Now I think there are better, not perfect, reporting systems in place … I think there are whistleblower protections, and there is a more trauma-informed approach, but there’s still a lot of work to do.”
Kim Shore of Gymnasts for Change Canada credited the sport’s governing body World Gymnastics for the positive progress made, but highlighted the wide variation in the sport around the world and the challenge of implementing reforms and safeguards at every level, including grassroots gymnastics.
“What we still consistently hear is that there’s very much a control dominance style of coaching that is pervasive in the sport, which means that gymnasts don’t have a strong voice,” Shore said.
“There’s still yelling, training on injuries, body shaming, preoccupation with thinness.”
Shore said one encouraging shift was that athletes were increasingly staying in the sport beyond their teenage years, with gymnasts competing into their late 20s and some returning after having children.
NEW WORLD GYMNASTICS SECRETARY GENERAL
The discussion took place as World Gymnastics prepares to appoint a new secretary general in the coming months, with Swiss Nicolas Buompane stepping down at the end of 2026.
The timing of the Gymnasts for Change event was also meant to highlight what the group believes should be priorities for the incoming leadership.
For Worden, the fundamental test remains whether sporting success is being prioritised over athletes’ welfare.
“The pursuit of medals over human rights or over safety is completely unacceptable, but we know it still happens,” she said.
Worden added that even relatively simple measures could go a long way.
“Have you ever seen in a gym a ‘Know Your Rights’ board or something like that? Some of these things cost nothing, and could make a huge difference,” she said.
Worden also cited the growing collective power of survivors of abuse as an important development.
“Survivors are realising they can stand together and get change, and they don’t have to do it individually,” Worden said.
For Aquilina, that willingness to speak remains central to changing the sport.
“Without a voice, there’s no choice and there’s no change,” she said.
(Reporting by Lori Ewing; Editing by Ken Ferris)
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