British gymnasts treated like ‘pieces of meat’-Nile Wilson
LONDON, United Kingdom.(News of the South)-Olympic medalist Nile Wilson criticizes a culture of abuse in the British Gymnastics.
The bronze winner at Rio 2016 is the highest ranked athlete to speak up after the sport was hit by allegations of mistreatment.
The 24 year old said he was scared that speaking about this would cost him the selection for the Tokyo Games.
The athlete said he felt “heartbroken” by how his complaint against the Leeds Gymnastics Club was “brushed under the carpet”.
“I just felt like I wasn’t being heard. And I was wronged,” said Wilson who also called the process “unprofessional. We’re made to feel fear, or scared of speaking out, voicing our concerns, because they have us, our livelihoods, in their hands.”
He went on to say that if he were to voice out his selection for the Olympics would be affected and so they all stay quiet.
In a statement Leeds Gymnastics Club said it disputed Wilson’s version of events and the allegations referred to were “professionally and robustly investigated in line with the club’s policy and advice.”
The British Gymnastics noted: “Any mistreatment of gymnastics is inexcusable at any level. It is vital that concerns are made public whether through the media or our processes.”
“To date, we have not had any complaint from Nile in regard to his regard to his gymnastics career and would encourage him, and any gymnast who feels they have been mistreated, to report it either to our Integrity Unit, or by calling the BAC/NSPCC Helpline on 0800 056 0566.”
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