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Post by Admin on Jan 21, 2019 18:28:00 GMT
Yesterday it was reported that former pairs skater John Coughlin died by suicide a day after his interim suspension from SafeSport was announced, but there was no public comment about the nature of the allegations against him by either SafeSport or U.S. Figure Skating. In an article in USA Today, journalist Christine Brennan reports that there were three complaints alleging sexual misconduct lodged with the U.S. Center for SafeSport about Coughlin. Citing an anonymous source, Brennan writes that the first report came from a person over 18, which triggered the initial SafeSport action, and the first disciplinary action against Coughlin. At the time, Coughlin, in an email to USA Today, described the allegations as “unfounded.”  Following the initial report and action, it appears that two additional complaints were made. Under an interim suspension, Coughlin was not allowed to participate in any capacity with activities tied to U.S. Figure Skating, the USOC, and any member national governing bodies. Coughlin died by suicide in Kansas City the following day. Upon news of his death, several prominent skaters including Gracie Gold and Johnny Weir, mourned him on social media. |
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Post by Admin on Apr 4, 2019 18:14:54 GMT
US Senator Richard Blumenthal has called on figure skating officials to make an “immediate change” in the sport, which has suffered from a long-lasting “culture of sexual abuse.” Blumenthal, who is serving his second term as a United States senator from the state of Connecticut, recently urged US figure skating bosses to learn from the much-publicized Nassar sexual abuse scandal. This shattered the American sport in 2016 with revelations of hundreds of underage gymnasts being continuously molested by the team doctor under the guise of medical treatment.  “I am appalled that no one in authority appears to understand the lessons of the horrific failures that enabled Larry Nassar’s abuse of young gymnasts for almost 30 years,” Blumenthal was quoted as saying by USA Today Sports. Last December, the US sport was rocked by another scandal after allegations of sexual misconduct were brought against John Coughlin, an American pair skater champion who represented the country at major international figure skating events. SafeSport, an independent nonprofit organization which describes its goals as battling against "all forms of abuse in sport," suspended Coughlin from his role in the sport after it launched investigations into sexual abuse accusations made against the skater. A day after his interim suspension and one week before the US Championships, Coughlin died by suicide at the age of 33. Last month, SafeSport stated that while investigating Coughlin’s alleged misconduct, it discovered “a culture in figure skating that allowed grooming and abuse to go unchecked for too long.” |
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Post by Admin on May 21, 2019 18:39:17 GMT
Former figure skater Bridget Namiotka accused her former partner John Coughlin of abuse on Sunday night in multiple Facebook posts, writing that the late figure skater had “sexually abused” her for two years. Namiotka was partners with Coughlin from 2004-2007, when she was between the ages of 14 to 17 and he was 18 to 21, according to USA Today. They won three medals on the Junior Grand Prix series and finished ninth at the 2007 U.S. national championships.  Coughlin committed suicide earlier this year. He was 33. Namiotka, 29, wrote four posts on Facebook about Coughlin alleging abuse on Sunday night. “I’m sorry but John hurt at least 10 people including me,” Namiotka wrote in the first post. “He sexually abused me for two years. Nobody innocent hangs themself.” Namiotka followed the first post up with three more just minutes later. “Someone that’s innocent doesn’t hang himself,” Namiotka wrote. “Think about the victims when you’re speaking up for what he did to at least 10 girls.” |
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Post by Admin on May 24, 2019 19:39:52 GMT
Namiotka was Coughlin's partner from 2004 and 2007. Together, they won medals in the World Junior Championships.  At the beginning of their partnership, she was 14 and he was 19.  They parted ways in 2007 when she was 17 and he was 22.  Coughlin went on to forge a partnership with Caydee Denney and he won adult competitions with her.  It is unclear if she was who reported him but in December, Coughlin, a two-time US national pairs champion, was placed under a restriction by SafeSport, the body with exclusive jurisdiction over allegations of sexual misconduct in Olympic sports, for unspecified conduct on December 17.  It has never been discovered where the claims originated and they have never been proven. |
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Post by Admin on May 26, 2019 17:39:18 GMT
Bridget Namiotka and John Coughlin were a figure skating pair who skated together for three years from 2004 to 2007. In 2005, Namiotka and Coughlin placed fifth at the Junior Grand Prix and won the silver medal at the U.S. Championships. In 2007, they placed ninth at the U.S. Figure Skating Championshops.  In 2011, with a different partner — Caitlin Yankowskas — Coughlin won the U.S. Championship for pairs figure skating. On January 18, 2019, John Coughlin committed suicide. Now, his former partner Bridget Namiotka is accusing Coughlin of sexually abusing her for two years. In a Facebook post she wrote: "I’m sorry but John hurt at least 10 people including me. He sexually abused me for 2 years. Nobody innocent hangs themself [sic].” Who is Bridget Namiotka? Bridget Namiotka is now 29-years-old. She is a native of West Chester, Pennsylvania. She started skating with Coughlin when she was 14 and he was 18. He moved from Kansas City to Delaware, where Bridget was based. After her initial accusation on Facebook, she wrote a number of other posts about the abuse including: "Grooming happens. It happened to me and he hurt a lot of girls. Think about the victims. Think about all of the girls he hurt.” Another message read: “Someone that’s innocent doesn’t hang himself. Think about the victims when you’re speaking up for what he did to at least 10 girls” and “Think about all of the girls he hurt." |
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