Kirsty Duncan: Canada needs a National Public Inquiry into Sport

Kirsty Duncan is a former Canadian Minister of Sport and served as deputy leader of the government in the House of Commons.

Kirsty was a former gymnast who felt fat shamed when she was competing.

On LinkedIn she listed 20 Twenty Reasons Why We Need a National Public Inquiry into Sport.

I’ll list a few here. Click through to see the rest.

  • Safe sport should always be the primary goal of every sport organization and coach, ahead of winning games, tournaments, or medals.
  • Stories of abuse, harassment, and sexual assault circulated for years but some sport organizations failed to hear, see, and act.
  • Emotional, psychological, physical, verbal, and sexual abuse of young athletes abound across many sports, and some abusers have not been held to account.
  • There is a compelling precedent for holding a national public inquiry, the Commission of Inquiry into the Use of Drugs and Banned Practices Intended to Increase Athletic Performance.

Oklahoma goes 198.425

All hail.

Best meet of the season. 5th best score in team history.

Spencer said there was some charitable judging.

Cirque du Soleil NEWS

The world’s biggest employer of acrobats is back to business as usual.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Sadly, Franco Dragone, founder and artistic director of Dragone, a competitor to Cirque du Soleil, died in 2022. His company has yet to reopen any shows following the pandemic.

USAG Daniels report 2017

Right now in Canada we’re comparing the recent McLaren Report against other similar reports from other nations.

From McLaren, GymCan will be putting together ACTION targets in order to make Gymnastics training safer for all participants.

In 2017, coach Jim Holt reviewed the USAG Daniels Report which arrived with ACTION target recommendations.

I’m taking a look back at Jim’s report in order to assess the upcoming GymCan targets. Especially the methodology of reporting instances of abuse that fall short of calling the police or child protection.

It should be simple. But fair.

Victims should feel confident their complaint will be handled promptly and in confidence. Those accused should feel they are innocent until proven guilty.

Check out Jim’s 2017 report for yourself. It’s a free download.

daniels-report-oct17Download

2023 European Games – NO Russia

Poland will host European Games with 10 sports — but no Gymnastics — June 21 to July 2, 2023.

Via Google Translate.

The organizers of the 2023 European Games in Poland will not allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate, despite the position of the International Olympic Committee.

The IOC has previously announced its readiness to consider the issue of admitting Russians and Belarusians to the Asian Games and giving them the opportunity to qualify for the Olympics in Paris.

sell out crowd Arkansas 197.475

Congratulations.

Mental Health is important for gymnasts

Reach out. Talk to friends and family.

Mental Health is as important as Physical Health.

outdoor vertical wind tunnel

Aerodium Sigulda opened this facility near near Sigulda, Latvia.

It was first built for a Tom Cruise ‘s Mission: Impossible movie.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Open Letter from Lilia Podkopayeva

Lilia Podkopayeva is the 1995 world all-around champion, and the 1996 Olympic all-around and floor exercise champion representing Ukraine.

Of course she’s correct. The fairest and safest decision for the Olympic Movement is to exclude athletes from Russia and Belarus.

To: All National Olympic Committees and International Sports Federations of the world.

Almost a year ago, on February 24, 2022, Russia illegally invaded the sovereign and independent country of Ukraine, and began a brutal and unprovoked war. The genocide continues as Russian citizens are allowed to freely travel, leave their country and go about their daily lives with no concerns or guilt.

It is appalling and infuriating that the #IOC is allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to complete in the upcoming Olympics under neutral and non-political banners. Sport is anything but neutral and filled with more politics than anyone will admit.

We cannot allow their athletes to compete during the ongoing war, period.

Russia must be pressured from every direction to end the war and withdraw from Ukraine as soon as possible.

I appeal to all #NOC’s and #ISF’s of the world to unify in not supporting the allowance of Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in the Olympics or sports while the war is continuing and ongoing.

We have a moral obligation to preserve the integrity of sport through humanity and compassion. We have a moral obligation to do what is right, not easier or politically correct.

EVEN THE GREATEST GAME IN THE WORLD IS NOT WORTH MORE THAN HUMAN LIFE.