Olympic gold medalist Dominique Moceanu offers support to Kara Eaker

When Kara Eaker announced her retirement from gymnastics, as both a member of the University of Utah’s renowned women’s team and from the sport as a whole, she did so with the stated goal of bringing attention to abuse in gymnastics.

As she wrote in a post on Instagram, “I believe in the power of truth and the need for safety and I want to be part of the solution. And I want to stop the cycle of abuse and the men who threaten girls and women in all sports. And I want to help girls and women find their voices, because together we can make a difference.

“I hope my voice will help you to recognize the early warning signs of abuse in order to get help and report it. There is strength in numbers as more of us come forward. So I encourage you, speak out and stand up for what you believe is right.”

Inspired in part by Eaker’s announcement last Friday, former Utah All-American gymnast Kim Tessen came forward with abuse allegations of her own, writing in a post on Instagram on Tuesday night, “I was verbally attacked without any signs of sympathy several times. My physical boundaries were also violated several times because these aggressive interactions would often occur with him yelling and pointing uncomfortably close at my face. Because of these types of interactions towards myself and witnessing it happening to others, I experienced even more fear,” she wrote about her former coach.

An attempt Thursday to reach the University of Utah for comment was not immediately returned.

On Wednesday, Olympic gold-medal winning American gymnast Dominique Moceanu posted on social media as well, expressing her support for Eaker and others who are alleged to have experienced abuse during their gymnastics careers.

Wrote Moceanu in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, “I want to offer my support to Kara Eaker during this difficult time. Nobody should go through emotional or verbal abuse at any point on their journey in gymnastics. Claims of abuse must be taken very seriously and be fully investigated for the well-being of all athletes. Any abusers, including coaches, supporting staff or whoever is at fault should be held to account. My hope is that the community will continue to support those like Kara who courageously speak up about abuse.”

Related

• Utah gymnastics program under review after allegations of emotional abuse

• Review of Utah gymnastics coach finds no ‘severe, pervasive’ abuse. But changes sought

Moceanu continued: “It saddens me that our sport is losing Kara and her tremendous talents, but I can certainly understand her, ‘why.’ I hope that as she heals, she might consider a return to the sport again in some way — when the time is right for her. Gymnastics cannot afford to lose its shining lights in this manner. It’s unfair to them after all the years of sacrifice and dedication ... and unfair to all of us who love this sport. Mostly, I applaud Kara for her courage to share her story and pray that she gains support in any and all capacities she needs.”

Abuse allegations by Eaker and Tessen come after a third-party investigation of Utah’s gymnastics program and head coach Tom Farden was conducted by Kansas City-based law firm Husch Blackwell this summer.

The investigation, spurred by the abuse allegations of multiple former Utah gymnasts and parents, as reported by the Deseret News, determined that Farden “did not engage in any severe, pervasive or egregious acts of emotional or verbal abuse of student-athletes” and “did not engage in any acts of physical abuse, emotional abuse or harassment as defined by SafeSport Code.”

The review also said that Farden’s behavior has improved over the last couple of years, following a prior in-house investigation conducted by the University of Utah, with “many current student-athletes” reporting that Farden, “has made noticeable efforts to improve in the following areas: responding to feedback, reacting less defensively to feedback, communicating with student-athletes, supporting (student-athlete) mental health needs, showing personal interest in and care for individuals apart from athletic ability, fewer intense mood swings, increased levels of trust with leadership council members, and the decreased use of harsh language when communicating with student-athletes.”

The investigation by Husch Blackwell did find, however, that Farden “made a derogatory comment to a student-athlete that if she was not at the University she would be a ‘nobody working at a gas station’ in her hometown” and “a few student-athletes alleged that Coach Farden made comments to student-athletes that, if corroborated, would have likely resulted in a finding that they violated the Athletics’ Well Being Policy’s prohibition on degrading language.”

Eaker’s unexpected early retirement and her public allegations of abuse experienced while at Utah have brought renewed interest, though, and her story has since been featured on “Good Morning America” and has been published in many major sports publications, including ESPN, The Athletic, CBS Sports and USA Today.

Wrote The Athletic’s Jim Trotter, “By standing in her truth, Eaker is giving a voice to not only those who are afraid to speak out, but also those who feel their concerns are being dismissed. She should be applauded because it takes courage to stand against a prominent coach and the largest and oldest institution of higher education in the state.”