British Gymnastics have announced that they will make a list of banned coaches available to view on their website as part of an action plan to make the sport a safer place.
For the past two years, the governing body have been rocked by a wave of allegations of mistreatment in the sport, leading to the publication of the Whyte Review in June.
Anne Whyte QC found that British Gymnastics had overseen a "systemic culture of abuse" in which gymnasts were subjected to physical abuse and verbal humiliation by their coaches.
Examples of malpractice included sitting on gymnasts or punishing them if they wanted to use the toilet, as well as weighing athletes and humiliating them if their physical condition was deemed to be insufficient - leading some to develop eating disorders.
British Gymnastics were said to have instilled a toxic culture of prioritizing medals over athlete safety, and cases of sexual abuse were also outlined by Whyte in her 306-page review.
Former CEO Jane Allen stepped down from her post in the wake of the revelations to be replaced by Sarah Powell, who is now at the centre of a reform within the sport.
Several coaches have already been named after allegations against them were made public by athletes, with high-profile international trainers Amanda Reddin and Liz Kincaid - both of whom refuted the accusations - among them.
'At the heart of this is listening and involving people in how we develop the reforms'.
— British Gymnastics (@BritGymnastics) October 18, 2022
Earlier today, we shared our Reform '25 plan, that sets out what needs to change and how, with progress already being made.
Read more about the plan on our website 👉 https://t.co/RAunyOWGyg
Four months on from the publication of the Whyte Review, BG CEO Powell has announced Reform '25, a 40-point action plan aimed at changing the culture of the sport within the next two years.
Names of coaches who have been banned will be made available to view on the BG website, and Powell has stressed that athlete safety must come first in a "zero tolerance" policy on abuse.
"Before we talk about medals and performance we need to be talking about the welfare and wellbeing of our gymnasts. I think if you make the welfare and wellbeing of athletes central, they will be mentally and physically well-prepared to go on and achieve international success," Powell said.
"We cannot focus on the outcome because we cannot control it. What we can do is focus on making sure they perform to the best of their ability by being in the best condition they can possibly be in – and that means we have to look after them all the way through the process.
"I'm not saying that we're not ambitious [or] that we don't want to see our gymnasts winning medals at the World Championships in Liverpool. What we want to make sure is that we have done it in the right way, and we have provided them with the right support both mentally and physically."
In addition to publishing the list of banned coaches, gymnasts and parents will take a greater role in decisions on training plans and development, and progress updates on creating an "open, transparent, caring, empowered and safe environment" will be given every six months.
Former Olympic rower Catherine Bishop has also joined British Gymnastics as an independent advisor following the damning Whyte Review.
