On Deck After USA Swimming’s Mitch Ivey Ban: Paul Bergen, Jack Nelson, Murray Stephens. First on the Starting Blocks: Still-Active Bergen.

Links to Concussion Inc.’s Coverage of Belatedly Banned Swim Coach Mitch Ivey
November 23, 2013
The Most Telling Concussion in Cal Football Occurred Off the Field
November 25, 2013

by Irvin Muchnick and Tim Joyce

 

Under the glare of government investigations of widespread coach sexual abuse, USA Swimming has escalated from sacrificing ham-and-eggers within its ranks to closing the historical books on some of the sport’s biggest names. That’s the significance of the lifetime ban of Mitch Ivey, the serial predator whose bust at age 64 takes the concept of “better late than never” to new levels.

We’ll comment further tomorrow on the significance of swimming’s moves in the context of the overall political rumblings in Washington over the failures of the U.S. Olympic Committee’s national sport governing bodies.

Meanwhile, after Ivey, at least three elderly living Hall of Fame coaches come under renewed scrutiny: Paul Bergen, Jack Nelson, and Murray Stephens. We start here with Bergen. At the bottom of this post are complete links from Concussion Inc.’s coverage of the Bergen story, which was launched by revelations in 2010 — including on ABC’s 20/20 — that he molested his Olympic swimmer Deena Deardurff Schmidt.

To this day, Bergen is not only a revered figure in the sport, but also a presence on the pool deck of his son Linck Bergen’s Tualatin Hills Swim Club in Beaverton, Oregon — which, incidentally, is sponsored by Nike and for the last 14 years has helped stage the Paul Bergen Junior International Championships. At http://muchnick.net/bergen.pdf, we uploaded the January 2013 issue of the club’s magazine, The Current.  See the photo on page 6 with this caption:

“A real celebrity was sighted on deck at this year’s Junior International as the man himself, Coach Paul Bergen, made an appearance …”

FURTHER READING ON BERGEN:

EXCLUSIVE: USA Swimming’s Secret International List of Youth Swimming Figures With Abuse Allegations Who Are Not Officially Banned

Published May 17th, 2012
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A Few Words About ID’ing Sex-Abusing Swimming Coaches

Published October 4th, 2012
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USA Swimming Sex Abuse Scandal Flashback: Muchnick’s Pre-Olympics Story — Killed by Yahoo Sports, Picked Up by MomsTeam

Published October 17th, 2012
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Notes on Sex Crimes in Sports Other Than Swimming – And a Question for the International Swimming Hall of Fame

Published November 19th, 2012
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Successor to Paul Bergen — Molester of Olympic Gold Medalist Deena Deardurff Schmidt — Is Newest Addition to USA Swimming’s Banned List

Published February 17th, 2013
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But Have We Really Seen the Last of Banned Molester Swim Coach Ad’m Dusenbury?

Published March 15th, 2013
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Re-Introducing Rapist Hall of Fame Swim Coach Paul Bergen — By Comparison, Newly Convicted Rapist Coach Rick Curl Is Small Potatoes

Published June 6th, 2013
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What Rapist International Swimming Hall of Fame Coach Paul Bergen Is Up to These Days

Published June 6th, 2013
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What USA Swimming CEO Chuck Wielgus Said Publicly About Rapist International Swimming Hall of Fame Coach Paul Bergen

Published June 6th, 2013
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Michael Phelps’ Coach, Bob Bowman, Talks About His Mentor, Rapist International Swimming Hall of Famer Paul Bergen

Published June 6th, 2013
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Concussion Inc. - Author Irvin Muchnick