Marco Knippen @MarcoKnippen
At her practice, sports psychologist Karin de Bruin counsels gymnasts who have fallen victim to transgressive behaviour and sexual abuse. She obtained her doctorate in 2010 on the subject of eating disorders among athletes. “I’ve now been working in sports counselling for 20 years and basically, nothing has changed. What went on then, still goes on now. It’s a very distressing observation to make.”
Right now, De Bruin has a female gymnast in her care. “It goes from one generation to the next; nobody gets off unscathed. It’s a shocking situation, just like the unhealthy eating behaviours that are often part and parcel of the problem. My research back then showed that approximately 50% of female gymnasts at the top of the sport suffer from some sort of eating disorder, and the actual figure is probably higher due to underreporting. Rather than being an exception, starvation diets are the norm.”
Today’s governing bodies in the sport preach strict disapproval, but according to De Bruin, their words mean very little in practice. “On paper, abuse and transgressive behaviour are addressed and dealt with strictly – by the national gymnastics association, but also by the Dutch umbrella sports organisation NOC*NSF and the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport. There are protocols in place, but those guidelines and codes of conduct mean nothing. It is as if they don’t exist in the sport’s uncompromising day-to-day reality.”
Underscoring the fact that exposing abuse is difficult, De Bruin goes on to say, “There is a rampant culture of fear, there are loyalty conflicts and you’re talked into believing that it’s you who has the problem. In a situation where social-emotional development is already disturbed, that’s bound to have adverse effects later on. On top of that, whistleblowers are declared personae non gratae. They are bullied out, left out in the cold and from that moment, relegated to operating in the margin.”
In the Netherlands, safe-sports watchdog CVSN is the place to go to report sexual or other forms of abuse, while sports arbitration institute ISR investigates reports and complaints, and passes disciplinary judgements. “I hate to say it, but I advise athletes who turn to me not to go to the ISR,” explains De Bruin. “Very often, cases are left on the shelf, or closed without further action being taken. That invariably causes victims even more harm. They are traumatised again. I’m less reluctant about referring people to the CVSN, but even then I have my concerns, as I’ve been told by athletes that they’ve walked away feeling unheard and misunderstood.”