Kara Goucher Alleges Alberto Salazar Sexually Assaulted Her in Her New Book

HoHoHo...what rapist hasn't denied they did it? Compare that to a woman who publicly says she was raped in a culture where most women are afraid to say they were raped?

This has played out in hundreds of “he said she said” situations throughout history. It’s likely that there is truth between what Kara perceived happened and what Alberto believed happened. Whenever this much time goes by, and whenever both parties completely believe their own perceptions, the reality is somewhere in the middle. I am certain that if there was a criminal intent perceived by Kara earlier on, something would have come out long ago, and not simply “in the book”. The hippocampus and memories of all can be distorted. If Kara was abused it is tragic and no woman should ever be made to be felt that way. If Alberto clearly did nothing in his “faith” then it’s tragic to place this on him. Truth is probably somewhere in the middle.

Ha ha ha ha, seriously? Many a man of color lost their life in this country’s history by the false word of a white woman that lied to hide her shame.

This case is the centerpiece of the myriad of cases we've recently seen that overwhelmingly shows.... coaches should never be massaging their athletes.

I can understand doing it if you have the right qualifications, but I still personally wouldn't do it. I'm by no means saying Kara is lying here. I don't think she is. But putting yourself in this position as a coach is just was too dangerous. There's just so much variation in the way people interpret touching someone's body. Even if you think you're in the clear, I guarantee you there's a person in the world who thinks differently.

Leave this up to someone with proper qualifications and a trusted reputation. This should be a standard for every collegiate program and up. Leaving it up to a coach to massage an athlete is unprofessional on so many levels.

Coaches, don't leave room for a question in your actions.

Really? You think Salazar and other athletes and staff at NOP don’t know that a coach massaging athletes is unprofessional? Are we really clueless as to why he was massaging his protégés including the male ones? Hint: it wasn’t sexual, just hormonal.

This is not a defense of Salazar. I will not go to bat for him or Kara here. It’s simply my thought as I read this thread.

I know for a fact there are lots of collegiate coaches who personally massage their athletes. It’s not professional. I don’t care if pro coaches do it; they shouldn’t be.

Yes.

Your post made me realize that I think there are two issues going on here at once.

1) Kara Goucher's allegations against Salazar.

2) Many people's uneasiness with SafeSport's authority and the way it works.

In regards to #2, I was telling a female friend of mine this story today. She said to me something along the lines of, "Why in the hell is US govt money going to some body to help protect professional adult athletes? We have way bigger priorities to be worried about."

I was also talking to a top college coach today. He said, "SafeSport was designed to protect 14-year old girls. Should it really be used for pros?"

I think the answer is probably not. An adult can a) stand up for themsleves and leave get a new coach b) report it to the authorities c) report it to their sponsors or d) report it to the press.

Now. Maybe instead we should have some central clearninghouse where people/schools can report allegations.There might be a place where you can go on the record that someone did something to you, so we don't have a situation where coaches are just quietly leaving one school and going to another.

Maybe an online database where you state "The following person did a, b, c" And then the person is allowed to defend themselves. I'm not sure how realistic that is but these extra-judicial bodies seemingly have too much power in many people's minds.

Back to #1, now that both the accuser and accused have been identified, is there any reason for the evidence, if there is any, not be not be made public?

From a fairness standpoint, the following line from the NY Times article scared me greatly.

“Salazar asked for an arbitration hearing, where he denied the accusations and said he did not speak with or see the runner on the days in question. The arbitrator did not find Salazar’s explanation credible, and accepted his accuser’s version of events.”

I hope that's just poorly written. Let's hope some proof was provided that they were together on the days in question.

If Salazar sexually molested Kara, I applaud Kara for writing putting in her book and for going to Safe Sport. That being said, if the only evidence is "she said, he said" I don't think I'm on board with him being banned for life based on an allegation from a single source. What other evidence, if any, did they have?

The court of public opinion and Safe Sport court need to be held to different standards and a criminal court would need to be even higher.

Just because someone is not banned for life doesn't mean they are innocent.

I don't want to take sides since I wasn't there, but as a general comment in reply to this is that a crime is a crime. You're basically saying professional sports/coaches should be above the law?

It's reassuring to see that Letsrun conforms to character, when a public complaint of sexual abuse by a female athlete against a coach who has been sanctioned for sexual abuse of a minor is routinely disbelieved or discredited by posters. I would be shocked if it wasn't so.

He's saying SafeSport shouldn't be used to protect adults because they have other options. But as we see here, look what happens when an adult makes a public complaint.

No. Just the opposite. Adults should report it to law enforcement and get the police involved.

Use Safe Sport to protect 13-year old gymnasts.

Technically speaking, she didn't allege that he "sexually assaulted her in her new book."

She alleged in her new book that he sexually assaulted her. It's the grammar snob in me.

But kudos to her for coming forward, even now, with the stories. If only she hadn't denigrated other mistreated athletes' experiences in the meantime. (The Wetmore-related IG post.)

It's pretty well established that adults *cannot* stand up for themselves when they are not in a position of power, and that's why Safe Sport has a role.

I read his comment as implying pros and coaches should get equal protection of due process of law. If a person is to be banned from his lifelong profession for life — not just fired from a single company but unable to work at all in the running world that is his entire world — the bar for proof beyond reasonable doubt should be higher. A pro is not quite as helpless as a college athlete.

Do we have all the details of the SafeSport investigation or assuming they simply took her word for it and banned him? Besides, she was not the only one who reported his abuse.

Like many here, you are confusing a process that governs the conduct of sport with the criminal process. They are not the same. Keeping sport safe applies to all and not just minors. SafeSport cannot operate like a criminal court and isn't meant to; it couldn't be effective if it were required to do so. Consequently it doesn't have the power to impose criminal penalties. The criminal process is a separate process. It applies to acts against minors as much as it does against adults. It will be invoked and can only be invoked when there is evidence of a crime that can be proven in a court of law. That isn't SafeSport.

He denied the allegations and was given the opportunity to respond to them, as was his right. He wasn't believed.