The accused had been accused of sexually abusing four underage girls in recent years, some of whom were also active in the BYC. He had harassed two of the victims in their sleep. As he himself was an adolescent at the time of the first two offences, the presiding judge justified the verdict by stating that juvenile criminal law applied, as reported by the "Süddeutsche Zeitung". The newspaper also quotes from the judgement that all the victims had "blindly trusted" the 24-year-old and that he had also exploited his position as a successful sailor in the BYC.
In a statement from the board of the Bavarian Yacht Club it says: "The incidents mentioned in the context of international sailing championships did not take place during the time in which he (the 24-year-old former BYC sailor; the ed.) sailed regattas for the BYC. The BYC has and had no knowledge of such incidents. We are aware of the seriousness and consequences of the situation for those affected and their families. We attach great importance to the safety and protection of our young people. Our youth work, which has been successful for over 50 years, is based on sportsmanship, cohesion, integrity and having fun sailing."
This is not the first case of abuse that has come to light in sailing. At the beginning of last year, we reported on the youth leader of a Franconian sailing club who had abused at least 57 boys and young people for two and a half decades (report in YACHT 10/2021).
At the time, we took this as an opportunity to research prevention work in sailing clubs in general. Below are excerpts from an interview with Mona Küppers, who has been President of the German Sailing Association since 2017 and is also the contact person there for the topic of sexualised violence. We spoke to her about the association's prevention campaign - and the responsibility of the clubs.
"Silence protects the wrong people"
YACHT: Ms Küppers, has the DSV not been sensitive enough to sexualised violence in sailing?
Küppers: On the contrary, the DSV was one of the very first top associations to adopt and implement a detailed prevention and intervention concept. And many years ago, we decided at the Sailing Day that legally convicted offenders would have their coaching licences revoked. That caused quite a stir at the time.
Nevertheless, there will now be a revised prevention concept. What's new?
We make every club and every board a low-threshold offer with lots of information. We want to use pressure and momentum to bring the topic to the attention of all sailing clubs. We address this in the training of trainers and sailing instructors and offer training courses on the subject. Not all clubs and boards have addressed the issue yet.
In this context, you now want to write to all 1300 sailing clubs in Germany. Is that enough?
We will not only regularly offer all clubs our range of training courses and individual advice and actively sensitise them to this topic. We will also offer workshops within the association - for all employees, the executive committee, the sailing council and the youth sailing committee. Everyone involved must realise that not addressing the issue is the real mistake.
Can't the clubs be obliged to appoint a youth protection officer?
No. But if word gets around that there are clubs that look and don't look away, then other clubs will have problems finding new members and trainers in the future. Because it is the duty and a mark of quality for every club to take care of the protection of the children, young people and adults entrusted to us.
Should the legislator set clearer guidelines?
I would like to see that. There are cautious developments to the effect that sports clubs must have appropriate concepts in place as soon as they receive public funding.
What is the response of the clubs to the DSV's prevention programmes?
They are well received.
You yourself have been dealing with the issue of sexualised violence for over 20 years. What has changed during this time?
When I started to deal with the issue and it became clear to others where I stood on the subject, I was sometimes uninvited from clubs that I wanted to visit. That has now changed significantly, and that makes me feel positive. Because silence protects the wrong people!
The interview was conducted by Jan Zier
Offers of assistance
The German Sailing Association has set up the email address schutzvorgewalt@dsv.org for questions and problems relating to this topic. All emails received there will be treated confidentially and forwarded to Mona Küppers, the DSV's representative for protection against violence in sport. Help is also available from the German Child Protection Association (tel. 030/214 80 90) or the "Nummer gegen Kummer - Kinder- & Jugendtelefon" (tel. 116 111).
Pascal Schürmann
Editor YACHT
