Radical changes in swimming to follow report on abuses

Irish swimming faces radical changes in the way it is run, following wide-ranging recommendations made by Dr Roderick Murphy in his report on sexual abuse of young swimmers.

The report, published last night, details a litany of abuses committed mainly by two former national coaches, George Gibney and Derry O'Rourke. It criticises the lack of supervision of Gibney and O'Rourke by their swimming club committees.

Dr Murphy concludes: "In a sport dominated by standard times, there were inadequate standards for behaviour. No one seemed to question the merits of imposing objectives which set high standards for children in competition, without having regard to their overall development." It adds: "Where the joy of the swimmer is replaced by the gratification of an adult, it ceases to be a sport."

Among the evidence detailed in the report is that Gibney slapped a 13-year-old swimmer in the face and called her a "whore" when she accused him of sexually abusing her, and he later forced her to perform oral sex.

It also details evidence of systematic hypnotism of swimmers by O'Rourke, who was jailed for 12 years last January after pleading guilty to a range of abuse charges. According to the report, O'Rourke encouraged swimmers to undergo "relaxation treatment" and, having hypnotised them, sexually abused them.

Neither coach is named in the report, but both are clearly identifiable from details. The document also notes that two allegations were made about coaches other than Gibney and O'Rourke.

In one of the cases, a witness who alleged she had been abused by Gibney said she had also been abused by others before that. She said that in 1977, when she was aged 12, one of her abusers suggested she accept a lift home from Gibney, who then abused her in the car.

The 161-page report, which was commissioned in February in the wake of O'Rourke's conviction, was presented to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Tourism, Sport and Recreation yesterday afternoon. The committee considered it for over three-and-a-half hours in private session before deciding to publish it. Copies of the document were presented to the Dail, and the committee reconvened in public session at 9 p.m., with the Minister for Sport, Tourism and Recreation, Dr McDaid, in attendance.

The inquiry under Dr Murphy SC heard evidence from more than 70 witnesses. Twenty of these were swimmers. Others included parents, coaches and officials of the IASA, psychologists, social workers and other experts.

The inquiry also understood investigation of records from the IASA and swimming clubs covering the period 1985 to 1995.