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Hampton Johnson
English 111
K Turner
3 November 2014
Inappropriate Relationships between Coaches and Athletes
A coach is defined by Webster as, a person who teaches and trains the members of a
sports team and makes decisions about how the team plays during games. Coaches are seen by
athletes as role-models and major life influences, sadly coaches do not always conform to this
predetermined notion. Coaches break the mold in many different ways; the most disturbing way
is when a coach forms sexual relationships with his or her athletes. Each major governing body
of sports has their own way of dealing with these offenders; each of these differs from the next.
To help eliminate this appalling issue one central punishment should be given to offenders to set
an example and resolve this issue. This punishment should be a strict ban for life of coaching;
these coaches cross moral and social boundaries of many kinds, therefore they should be
punished to the full extent of the governing body.
The rebuttal to a ban for life for sexual relations with an athlete is; sometimes the
relationship is started by the athletes. This simple and poorly thought out argument is defeated by
the lack of statistical data supporting this statement. With this lack of data the opinion coaches
should be banned for life becomes more and more plausible.
The only way to stop coaches overstepping their boundaries is one strict consequence for
any type of inappropriate relationship. Coaches that partake in these inappropriate relationships

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break social boundaries to the highest extent. The womens cross country coach at Toledo
University resigned in late February due to allocations of sexually suggestive text messages and
drinking alcohol while at practice(Sturtz). This coachs simple abuse of power resulted in him
targeting his athletes. While abusing his power this coach betrayed every ounce of trust his
athletes had instilled in him. Unfortunately, this is just one incident of coaches abusing their
powers to such great extent to where they feel as if they cannot get caught. Even if the coach is
caught, like in this case, the coach was only forced to resign from his position. The lack of
discipline from governing bodies of sports allows these coaches to become repeat offenders and
when this abuse is ongoing the effects on the athletes are extremely emotional to say the least.
The most vivid example of an inappropriate relationship inflicting deep emotional
damage is the personal accounts of Kristen Cunnanes battle with sexual abuse by one of her
middle school coaches. Cunnanes story goes through her horrific battle with coming to terms
with the abuse as she lived her adult life as a coach. Cunnane suffered countless flashbacks
recalling vivid images of abuse she thought had been long forgotten (Kristens). Cunnane came
forward with her story to 48-hours, a popular crime investigative show, to raise awareness to the
issue of inappropriate relationships and sexual abuse to athletes by their coaches. By coming
forward with her story Cunnane inspired many others abused by the same coach to come forward
and put this coach behind bars. As a coach herself Cunnane realizes a coach could do nothing
more to ruin a bond with their athlete than to escalate their relationship to an abusive level.
In many cases abuse of an athlete is not an isolated incident, just like in Cunnanes case.
Ongoing abuse was also horrifically demonstrated in the infamous Jerry Sandusky case.
Sandusky was tried on forty-eight cases of inappropriate contact with a minor and convicted of
forty-six of them, resulting in a sixty year sentence (Laura).

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Works Cited

"Coach." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 06 Nov. 2014. <http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/coach>.

"Kristen's Secret." CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 17 Oct. 2014. Web. 06 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.cbsnews.com/news/kristen-cunnanes-harrowing-tale-of-a-coachs-sexualabuse/>.

Laura Dolan Reported from Bellefonte; Josh Levs Reported from Atlanta. Susan Candiotti, Jason
Carroll, Ross Levitt, and Ed Payne Contributed to This Report. "Sandusky Gets at Least
30 Years for Child Sex Abuse." CNN. Cable News Network, 01 Jan. 1970. Web. 06 Nov.
2014. <http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/09/justice/pennsylvania-sandusky-sentencing>.

Sturtz, Rachel. "Abuse of Power." Runner's World & Running Times. Runner's World, 31 May
2013. Web. 06 Nov. 2014. <http://www.runnersworld.com/college-racing/abuse-ofpower>.