Posted by Gymnastics Ireland, the governing body that oversees safeguarding children in the sport, confirmed an inquiry is underway but said it could not comment further on the allegations against the individual.Several complaints have been made against the man in the last 12 months, and he has since stopped coaching at the facility.
Gymnastics Ireland is assisting Tusla with its investigations.
The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had been an elite coach in the sport for several years. Older social media photos show him posing with young gymnasts at international events.He described how the coach would allegedly invite underage students of his into social settings, including pubs.
It was alleged he also invited them to travel to the south of the country, where he would take them to social events.
The coach has also been accused of meddling in his students’ relationships. It is alleged he would contact the partners of his students and tell them to stay away from them. Extra.ie has been able to verify this happened in at least one incident.‘[The coach] is extremely controlling and manipulative and abuses the young gymnasts in his care through coercive behaviour both in-person and online through social media,’ one man told Extra.ie.
Gardaí have not been involved; it is understood there is no suggestion of any sexual impropriety.
Gymnastics Ireland said: ‘We are aware of the matter and as per our initial email reply, given that there is an external investigation ongoing with a State body, we are unable to comment.’
There are fears within gymnastics circles there may be more incidents of coercive behaviour by this coach over the past two years. The investigation has been going on for nearly a year, several sources with knowledge of the investigation told Extra.ie.
A parent of one child who previously attended the gym described how the man was ‘well-respected’ before the allegations were made against him.
‘This fella was the cream of the crop. You’d trust him with anything… I don’t like to believe in rumours at all. Then we heard things were getting a bit more serious. Now, my daughter never trained with him, but I didn’t feel comfortable with her going back to the gym… I completely understand this man has not been arrested or anything along those lines, but felt a bit uneasy about sending [her daughter] back there.’
According to Gymnastics Ireland’s safeguarding policy, ‘any individual whose role will have ongoing contact with our young members or vulnerable persons in the provision of our activities must complete safeguarding training (as part of best practice GI would encourage anyone involved who may not have ongoing contact with our young members to complete safeguarding training – including parents).’
Extra.ie made several attempts to contact the gym where the accused trainer worked but no reply was received by the time of publication.
One man who has claimed to have been trained by the man said: ‘I was coached by [Coach] for several years, and his behaviour was extremely inappropriate. I know of two gym members that he routinely brought away on social events with him, including to [county in the south] for weekends. On several of these occasions, he would bring these underage persons to pubs to socialise and meet his friends. I can confirm that he did invite me, as a minor, to the pub with him.
‘He would repeatedly overstep the mark of what constitutes a professional coaching relationship, telling me that I could not have relationships while I was focusing on my gymnastics pursuits, and he even on one occasion followed and messaged my girlfriend on Instagram (who is not a gymnast) and advised her of the same.’
A statement from Tusla said: ‘Tusla does not comment on individual cases. This is to protect the privacy of the children and families we work with.’
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