Dan Sanders

JonH · All-time great

Dan Sanders

Priesty · Challenger level

I seem to remember his name, was once in a squad alongside Tim Henman if memory serves me correctly.

Sadly this has happened before in GB tennis, the Claire Lyte case in 2007 was very well documented.

-- Edited by Priesty on Saturday 6th of May 2017 11:29:01 PM

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

The Regis de Camaret case in France was particularly shocking and revolting.

The Optimist · ATP qualifying

As recent events in football show, all sports attract such individuals. It provides opportunity and cover for their activities. Whilst I have not knowingly come across anything in this line, I am often amazed at how trusting parents are when it comes to children and sports coaches, somehow it's as though normal rules don't apply. I would suggest it is an area where greater parental vigilance and suspicion is needed. As said earlier, such people look for roles where they can be in positions of trust around youngsters.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

The even more incomprehensibly shocking situations are where it's been shown that certain parents knew or quasi-knew and accepted it as what was necessary to make it, because they were so thrilled that their child was being coached by that 'star' coach.

Timothy · Improver

Nick Fulwood

https://www.thefreelibrary.com/FIRST+PERVICE%3B+Top+tennis+coach+sleeps+in+girl+of+14's+room+..+yet...-a0129783277

JonH · All-time great

Timothy wrote:
Nick Fulwood
https://www.thefreelibrary.com/FIRST+PERVICE%3B+Top+tennis+coach+sleeps+in+girl+of+14's+room+..+yet...-a0129783277

Never saw that - Fulwood was quite well known, I recall seeing him play at Ilkley many years ago. He managed to get into the Top 200 from memory.

indiana · Tennis legend

Probably worth saying that there is of course a difference between being charged and being found guilty and / or indeed necessarily being guilty at all.

steven · Tennis legend

Thanks, indiana, for writing what I was thinking I ought to write after reading the early part of the thread.

This kind of thing must be quite a significant problem in individual sports, I'd have thought - lots of 1:1 coach:player relationships, lots of travelling and need to save costs, lots of young girls coached by men, and so on. Worrying if you're a parent, though while they obviously need to be vigilant for signs of trouble, being continually suspicious about everything probably isn't going to help anyone.

It must also be a concern for the dedicated coaches who only want the best for their players and, I imagine, make up the vast majority (I've certainly been very impressed with the few I've talked to in recent years) - only a frivolous accusation from a disgruntled young player away from potentially being demonised and no doubt it's virtually impossible to avoid being alone with the player sometimes.

Let's hope they get to the truth of this case, anyway, whatever the truth actually is.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

It is an important point about the presumption of innocence. And Fulwood deserves to have the point made.

However, to highlight the real dangers to victims, I would just add that the Regis de Camaret case has been tried, found against him, appealed and had the sentence increased even further.

The Le Monde article is in French, but worth putting.

www.lemonde.fr/societe/article/2014/02/11/regis-de-camaret-condamne-a-dix-ans-de-prison-en-appel-pour-viols_4364653_3224.html

Barry Heffernan's case is equally heinous.

And, further, it is not always male coaches. The Lyte case was a nasty case involving a female coach, and female young girl player:

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/7074721.stm

And she had been given two official warnings by the LTA - but seemingly nothing further - which begs many questions.

Timothy · Improver

JonH wrote:
Timothy wrote:
Nick Fulwood
https://www.thefreelibrary.com/FIRST+PERVICE%3B+Top+tennis+coach+sleeps+in+girl+of+14's+room+..+yet...-a0129783277

Never saw that - Fulwood was quite well known, I recall seeing him play at Ilkley many years ago. He managed to get into the Top 200 from memory.

-- Edited by Timothy on Friday 5th of May 2017 08:33:48 PM

Priesty · Challenger level

Yes I think Fulwood did get to just inside the top 200 helped largely by a run to round 3 at Wimbledon in 1989.

Timothy · Improver

Coup Droit wrote:
It is an important point about the presumption of innocence. And Fulwood deserves to have the point made.

However, to highlight the real dangers to victims, I would just add that the Regis de Camaret case has been tried, found against him, appealed and had the sentence increased even further.

The Le Monde article is in French, but worth putting.

www.lemonde.fr/societe/article/2014/02/11/regis-de-camaret-condamne-a-dix-ans-de-prison-en-appel-pour-viols_4364653_3224.html

Barry Heffernan's case is equally heinous.

And, further, it is not always male coaches. The Lyte case was a nasty case involving a female coach, and female young girl player:

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/7074721.stm

And she had been given two official warnings by the LTA - but seemingly nothing further - which begs many questions.

Innocent until proven otherwise, Nick Fulwood was deemed innocent and there was insufficient evidence to prove otherwise. Ched Evans (footballer) was wrongly convicted of rape and sent to prison, thankfully a retrial acquitted him of the charge and he is now rebuilding his life.

The girl that Fulwood was accused of raping ended up marrying a tennis coach and starting a family, ironically he was twice her age! Not saying there is anything wrong with her choice but it appears she hasn't been permanently scarred as was the worry of her mother.

-- Edited by Timothy on Saturday 6th of May 2017 11:20:50 AM

Oakland2002 · All-time great

I think there are some fundamental behaviour patterns that coaches of all sports need to avoid.

When boundaries are crossed it is entirely appropriate to be suspicious. It is the child that is the vulnerable individual that needs protecting not the coach. If a coach shares a room with a child of either sex that is a breach of trust, that coach should be censured. If they have no insight and indeed if they have insight they should consider (be made to) do something else.

Unfortunately paedophiles will seek opportunities to get close to children, operation Ore opened our eyes to the scale of access to child pornography and many individuals who one would never have been even slightly suspicious of were investigated 7250 leading to 1451 convictions!! There was premature reporting of the investigation leading to a window of opportunity in which evidence could be hidden, even so that is a 20% conviction rate.

I have had the misfortune to come across three individuals investigated for such offences against children in my life outside of work (and a few other prolific offenders in a professional capacity) all were school teachers only one taught PE and I have come across many teachers. In all three cases the evidence was compelling (one related to operation Ore) and all 3 got reported nationally. One was historical and as was the case in the 80's covered up by the institution involved but of the more recent cases both went to prison, one has reoffended.

If I had been involved personally I think it would be something that I would not be able to post about. Indeed as with the professional footballers who have as adults finally revealed that they were abused by coaches as children, it is quite possible that in time a tennis player will reveal the same, there are just less tennis coaches coaching elite juniors with a view to progressing to professional tennis which historically has been a cottage industry by comparison. There are many lessons that can be learnt for the future.

The case of a professional footballer having sex with another adult with or without consent or perhaps so inebriated they were unable to consent is not particularly relevant to tennis coaches having inappropriate relationships with their pupils, ie children and under the age of consent. There are many miscarriages of justice however I feel stopping a coach from coaching who has breached some of the fundamental professional guidelines when working with children is entirely appropriate.

Being able to get married and have a family is definitely not evidence that no damage has been done by abuse (if that is what happened) in childhood, indeed that process which for most brings much joy, may have been very challenging.

-- Edited by Oakland2002 on Saturday 6th of May 2017 04:51:55 PM

-- Edited by Oakland2002 on Saturday 6th of May 2017 04:52:40 PM

-- Edited by Oakland2002 on Sunday 7th of May 2017 12:24:11 AM

indiana · Tennis legend

Thanks Oakland for that information and insight. I did earlier immediately have similar thoughts as regards your final paragraph, and not necessarily just re her remaining childhood but still I can imagine even now in spite of how her life seems to have unfolded - again if that's what happened to her or similar for anyone else.