Gymnastics boss faces questions on handling of disgraced coaches
Gymnastics Canada chief executive officer Ian Moss was on the hot seat at the status of women hearings on safety of women in sport on Monday in Ottawa.
During testimony that reportedly ended in Moss hurling verbal abuse at outspoken gymnastics advocate Kim Shore, Moss was repeatedly questioned by members of parliament about his federation’s handling of coaches Alex Bard and Scott McFarlane amid accusations he knew of complaints from athletes, but allowed them to continue coaching.
Moss said McFarlane’s was a criminal case that GymCan had no involvement with. He argued his hands were tied with Bard.
“There were several allegations (against Bard),” Moss said. “That’s the point. We have to do due diligence in terms of facts.”
Bard was named in 2018 to Canada’s coaching staff for the 2020 Olympics despite allegations of maltreatment. Moss said Monday the formal code of conduct complaint ended in his termination in 2019, although GymCan’s press release said Bard was resigning for “personal reasons.”
MP and status of women chair Karen Vecchio closed the first panel’s testimony by demanding Moss submit all GymCan email correspondence and board meeting minutes on Bard and McFarlane, “so we’re getting both sides of the story.”
The second panel Monday began moments later, with MP Andreanne Larouche stating Moss had “verbally assaulted” Shore on his way out of the room. Shore is a former GymCan board member and a founder of Gymnasts For Change Canada.
Moss did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The status of women meetings come after an outcry from hundreds of athletes in several sports, including gymnastics and bobsled and skeleton, about toxic environments in their national federations.