Status of Women committee  Thank you, Madam Chair, for that important question. What we expect is what we hope for, and that is that our call for a judicial inquiry will be heard and acted upon. If I'm very honest, Gymnasts for Change has received a lot of attention, both from government and MPs as well a

Status of Women committee  You're addressing our spirit. I think I speak on behalf of at least the over 600 gymnasts who have signed our open letter: Our spirits have been broken. I can't believe that the environment I endured when I was 13 years old and thought might have changed enough, with our societ

Status of Women committee  I'll start by saying that the legal system has let down sport as well. The legal system has particularly let gymnastics down. Even recently, we have had multiple coaches let off, stays of proceedings and acquittals, and that's if we can get enough evidence and enough brave witnes

Status of Women committee  I would like to add that the background check system in Canada is woefully inadequate. That is a very big part of this problem. It is almost impossible for employers, gymnastics clubs, soccer clubs, etc. to do adequate background checks on their potential hires.

Status of Women committee  This past summer, we self-funded our trip to Ottawa to be present to hear the members of Hockey Canada defend themselves against complaints, allegations and accusations that Rob and my team, Gymnasts for Change, and I know all too well. We wanted to hear what they had to say firs

Status of Women committee  Thank you for being so interested. I think as parents we mistakenly assume that the people we are handing our children over to, the coaches who have asked us to grant them professional respect and professional trust, are not safeguarding our children. We need culture change f

Status of Women committee  I would like to add that it's impossible for parents to make informed decisions about which coaches or clubs are safe for their kids to participate in. For example, on the banned-and-suspended list that Amelia referenced, there's no indication of what the charge was or what the b

Status of Women committee  Thank you, Madam Chair, for the question. Many things have gone wrong. To your point about looking the other way, wilful blindness is very prevalent in sport, particularly in gymnastics. We are taught as gymnasts that there's no crying in gymnastics. Put a smile on your face ev

Status of Women committee  Thank you, Madam Chair, for the question. I'd like to hand that answer over to my colleague from Gymnasts for Change, Amelia Cline.

Status of Women committee  Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you to this committee. This feels like a watershed moment for sport, particularly gymnastics. When you think of gymnasts, picture little children six to eight years old starting their competitive journeys, training 20 to 30 hours every week, o