There are a lot of people who believe that we don’t need SafeSport. They believe that law enforcement should be the exclusive arbitrator of misconduct. If it is not criminal, then someone should not be banned from coaching.
These messages are between coach Anthony Gerhard and a 13yo athlete he coaches in AAU club Texas Prodigy Track Club.
The parents immediately reported this to law enforcement. But if this is all there is, this probably won’t rise to the level of criminal charges. IDK how the Texas laws are written, but this does not rise to criminal level in my state (WA).
This is why we need SafeSport.
Shit like this is why we now have SafeSport policies that prohibit coaches from having one on one digital communication with unrelated minor athletes.Would you want this man coaching your kids? Perhaps he has never touched a kid. Do you believe he never would?
Would you want your child receiving messages like this from a coach? We all have to shift what is normal in our sport. In all sports. Kids need to know that it is not normal for their coach to be private messaging them on any platform.
We’ve all texted/messaged our athletes in the past. It is super convenient. But so many coaches have abused the easy access that modern technology gives us.
Copy a parent or another coach on your communications with minors. Keep it professional. Have good boundaries.
Make predators like this stand out. Don’t let them hide in plain sight.
To everyone in our sport who actively supporting individuals who have been banned by the Center for SafeSport, stop being part of the problem.
And shout out to AAU Sports for being a big part of the problem by not recognizing SafeSport bans and not making public who you have taken disciplinary action against.
These messages do violate AAU policies. Will AAU take action against this coach? We’ll never know.
