"Nobody should go through emotional or verbal abuse at any point" - Dominique Moceanu pens note in support of Kara Eaker

Former Olympic gymnast Dominique Moceanu recently penned a heartfelt note in support of Utah gymnast Kara Eaker, who made headlines on Friday after she announced her retirement from her university’s gymnastics team as a result of its abusive training session.

Two-time world champion Kara Eaker recently opened up about her experience on the University of Utah's gymnastics team, stating that the abusive nature of the training program took a toll on her mental and physical health.

The 20-year-old included the fact that the aggressive behaviour of a coach discouraged her from communicating with him. Moreover, when Eaker tried to report her experience to the university officials, she was neglected and gaslighted. On realizing that the problem was institutional, Eaker decided to take herself out of the equation.

Eaker received immense love and support from fellow gymnasts and fans after sharing her experience on Instagram. Among the several people supporting her, legendary gymnast Dominique Moceanu also came out to show solidarity with the young gymnast.

In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), Moceanu penned a note offering support to Kara Eaker. The 42-year-old wrote:

"Nobody should go through emotional or verbal abuse at any point on their journey in gymnastics."

Furthermore, the American gymnast stated that claims of abuse should be taken seriously and investigated for the well-being of all athletes. Abusers in the form of coaches and staff members must be held accountable. Moreover, Moceanu hoped that the gymnastics community would support more gymnasts like Kara Eaker who come out with similar experiences.

Lastly, she expressed her sadness to see a bright gymnast like Eaker part ways with gymnastics. The legendary gymnast applauded the youngster for her courage to open up and hoped that she would get more support from the related communities.

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Former Utah gymnast came out in support of Kara Eaker

Kim Tessen (Image via University of Utah Athletics)

After Kara Eaker shared her experience at Utah Gymnastics to the world, former gymnast Kim Tessen also came out about her abusive experiences at the same university.

In her X post, Tessen revealed that although she achieved a lot under Utah Gymnastics, the abusive experiences at the university were not worth the success. She named coach Tom Farden as extremely strict and promoting favoritism in the team. According to the gymnast, team members were forced to eat and look a certain way. On breaking any protocol set by the coach, the gymnasts had to face negative consequences. Tessen added in her post:

"I was verbally attacked without any signs of sympathy several times."

Read her full statement below: