Painful Reading

Bookshelves and book collections say a lot about people. Imagine my parents feelings when my sister started her serial killer book colllection in her teen years. Not something which gives you a warm loving sensation and confidence that you've raised a normal child, but she didn't turn out too bad I guess.

On my bookshelves - you'll find one in Leeds and one in Lausanne - there is a wide and extensive collection of sports books...largely autobiographies and some historical and reference books, but the common theme is sport. You will also find the Dexter collection which I love and somewhere in the loft, you'll find the complete works of Shakespeare but there is as much dust as pages.

One of the most enthralling but harrowing books I have read in the last couple of years is the Theo Fleury autobiography. If you don't know who is, he was a star ice hockey player in the NHL and for Team Canada, and he shares his life and particularly how he was sexually abused during the early days of his hockey career by one of his coaches. Not an easy read, but pretty compelling and sad at the same time.

It was around a year ago that I read the book and I was reminded of it last week when a similar story hit the headlines. If you don't live in the States or love american sports, you may not have heard the story, but the most successful coach in College Football was fired due to him being aware of one of his coaches allegedly abusing a number of young students in the last 10-15 years. Another story broke this morning of another accusation in another university.

Pretty scary to think that we put our faith and trust in coaches, trainers, and teachers to guide and educate children, and this kind of thing can happen. I have a high tolerance of hearing and watching blood and guts....that may come from my love of Dexter, UFC or maybe my sister's influence, but I cannot abide with this kind of stuff and I think it is one of the worst crimes that can be committed. I hope the book gets thrown at these guys, and I don't mean any from my bookshelf, if they are guilty. It's the only way kids, schools, and communities can get over it and recover their belief. I fear that this is more rife than we realise.