WAG Interesting turn: Bela and Martha Karolyi suing USA Gymnastics

[bogwoppit]

Even if the concept carries on (which I know it will), I can’t imagine any tradition being seamless. There will be impacts. I just hope things settle down before 2020...

I am positive it would not be a smooth transition. Just no way to make that work. But I am sure the regions, and local coaches would leap on board. After all this is not just about the kids is it? We are talking about 1000's of jobs on the line, and a lot of money. This is huge business.

 

[AWOL]

I am kind of curious why you'll think that the USAG will go Bankrupt and cease to exist.
I would think that they would have indemnity insurance that should cover some of the costs if sued. I know that when I was working as a real estate agent I had to have it.
Also why would they cease to exist it they did go Bankrupt.
There are many companies that are still running even though they have gone through bankruptcy, sometimes multiple times.
I kind of think I would rather stay with the evil I know rather than one I don't know

 

[MeetDirector]

I am with @AWOL on this one. Frankly, I don't see USAG disappearing and I definitely don't see the US Junior Olympic program going anywhere and for the Women, I don't see major changes coming. Why would the JO program need to be thrown away? The JO program was not the root cause for Nassar's evil; Nassar was pure evil himself. The Program that exists today has been successful and, frankly, continues to be successful. High-level skills are being trained and executed, the Program is producing more high-level athletes than there are available college team spots, the Program produces outstanding young women ... I don't see why everyone thinks the Program will go away.

Now, the world of elite training and the track to the US Team is a different beast. There need to be changes there, but not a wholesale remove and replace.

Maybe I am just not seeing what all of the rest of you are seeing.

 

[John]

I am not sure they will go bankrupt, but the last I read there were over 260 litigates and it seems more being added daily. Can they possibly have enough insurance? I worry because this was not necessarily bad business practice but more lack of morals and ethics to achieve success. Yes the average JO program is a wonderful thing producing wonder human beings. Does that average JO program owner really care what the governing body is named? The only saving grace I see for the USAG is that the average beginning gymnast parent has zero concepts of what they are about to step into when they introduce their child to a gymnastics class.

 

[bogwoppit]

I am kind of curious why you'll think that the USAG will go Bankrupt and cease to exist.
I would think that they would have indemnity insurance that should cover some of the costs if sued. I know that when I was working as a real estate agent I had to have it.
Also why would they cease to exist it they did go Bankrupt.
There are many companies that are still running even though they have gone through bankruptcy, sometimes multiple times.
I kind of think I would rather stay with the evil I know rather than one I don't know

I never said they would, but it is a possibility that some people have been preparing for, just in case. Nothing to do with me at all. I do not have a stick in the pile at all. Just telling you what I have heard.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

They are in CYA mode. What’s the saying, the best defense, is an offense.

Not surprising

 

[jamieintexas]

My son and I are both coaches, he is also a judge. Both of us expect our membership fees to go up to cover their legal fees. Neither of us are willing to pay a dollar extra next season. None of the other coaches we know are either. If the system collapses, it will be because the coaches are already so disgusted by their behavior and we refuse to pay for it.

 

[coachmolly]

My son and I are both coaches, he is also a judge. Both of us expect our membership fees to go up to cover their legal fees. Neither of us are willing to pay a dollar extra next season. None of the other coaches we know are either. If the system collapses, it will be because the coaches are already so disgusted by their behavior and we refuse to pay for it.

So are you saying you aren't planning on paying membership fees next season? Or that you will only pay membership fees and nothing else? Likewise, I'm curious if there are clubs out there that don't intend to renew athlete memberships and either skip the competitive season or go another route (USAIGC, AAU, etc.). I just can't picture that happening on a large scale.

 

[jamieintexas]

I am saying that if they try to raise my membership fee to pay their legal fees, I will refuse. I don’t think that I am alone. Coaches have dedicated our lives to this sport and we are furious about the abuse and the way it has been handled.

 

[Aussie_coach]

So here in Australia we pay membership fees for all our athletes regardless of whether or not they are competitive, in my state at least the fees are the same if they are a once a week pre school gymnasts or an international gymnast. Does it work the same in USAG?

If so a form of protest for some gyms may be just to pay memberships for those athletes who are entering sanctioned competitions and seek insurance elsewhere for their many recreational gymnasts.

 

[raenndrops]

So here in Australia we pay membership fees for all our athletes regardless of whether or not they are competitive, in my state at least the fees are the same if they are a once a week pre school gymnasts or an international gymnast. Does it work the same in USAG?

If so a form of protest for some gyms may be just to pay memberships for those athletes who are entering sanctioned competitions and seek insurance elsewhere for their many recreational gymnasts.

Here, only competitive USAG JO, USAG Xcel, and USAG Elite gymnasts and coaches (who will be on the floor during competition) need USAG memberships. Some gyms have all their coaches and rec class teachers get USAG memberships.
Those gyms that only compete in a YMCA League or AAU or IGC or any of the myriad of state rec leagues are not required to have USAG memberships (Though at least 1 coach on the floor for each team at YMCA Nationals is required to be a current USAG member.

 

[Lunde]

So the Karolyis' have made conflicting statements about Nassar. In one they said that they didn't know until after the 2016 Olympics but in the other they said they were told by Penny in 2015.
https://www.ocregister.com/2018/05/...ssar-molested-team-usa-gymnasts-in-june-2015/

 

[Deedee]

So here in Australia we pay membership fees for all our athletes regardless of whether or not they are competitive, in my state at least the fees are the same if they are a once a week pre school gymnasts or an international gymnast. Does it work the same in USAG?

If so a form of protest for some gyms may be just to pay memberships for those athletes who are entering sanctioned competitions and seek insurance elsewhere for their many recreational gymnasts.

Are you sure because I am pretty sure recreational gymnastics and competitive gymnasts pay a different amount for rego from gymnastics association. I am positive as we received an email from them this year stating the costs went up from the gymvic

 

[coachmolly]

I am saying that if they try to raise my membership fee to pay their legal fees, I will refuse. I don’t think that I am alone. Coaches have dedicated our lives to this sport and we are furious about the abuse and the way it has been handled.

Got it, and I totally agree. I know there are plenty of coaches out there that would prefer not to give them any money at all but we're kind of stuck. I didn't even think that they might try to raise the membership fee. I have to renew my Safety certification this year and am dreading giving them even more money.

 

[Aussie_coach]

Are you sure because I am pretty sure recreational gymnastics and competitive gymnasts pay a different amount for rego from gymnastics association. I am positive as we received an email from them this year stating the costs went up from the gymvic

In my state, we pay the exact same fee for all gymnast regardless of their competitive status (we are not in Victoria)

 

[skschlag]

Yes, bankruptcy is a concern. As is the USOC decertifying USAG as the governing body for the Olympic games as a way to distance themselves from USAG.

 

[l.c.o]

I personally would be surprised to see a decline in enrollment/membership in USAG. While my DD recently left the sport, it had nothing to do with this situation, as far as I can tell (though the culture in general had an impact). As far as I can remember, my kids' gym has made no comment about the situation at all, and it seem they are still adding kids to the team program.

This all said, as a side note, I was surprised to recently learn that membership is required in some other sports, even just to practice. Granted there are different membership levels - ranging from limited to fully competitive.

In a way this is nice, as then all athletes/families beginning with rec receive regular communication from the governing body. My DD started with the lowest tier of membership last summer for an intro camp, and we've received communication ever since. This makes sense, and must lighten the burden on the club a bit as far as insurance costs go.