Written by I saw this article (https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/olympics/2020/09/29/sexual-abuse-olympic-skater-morgan-cipres-under-investigation-retires/3573251001/) a few weeks ago and then heard nothing else about it. Morgan Cipres, the French Olympic skater who sent two lewd photos of his genitalia to a 13-year-old American female figure skater in 2017 is finally under investigation by the U.S. Center for SafeSport and the police.
I would have to say that taking the innocence away from a child is one of many parents’ worst fears. That nobody stepped in to stop Cipres or help the girl is unfathomable.
To make matters worse, many people have known about this for years, to include coaches: John Zimmerman, an Olympian and member of US Figure Skating Association‘s Hall of Fame, and Silvia Fontana, a multi Olympian from Italy. In 2017, they kept the family from reporting the alleged incident to authorities by shaming and threatening the girl because Cipres was preparing for the Olympics.
So far, Cipres has recently “retired” from figure skating and French skating federation president Didier Gailhaguet resigned earlier this year, after dismissing the need to investigate the alleged abuse. Nobody has been arrested, charged, or fired.
There needs to be a better way to protect athletes.