A former top-level swimmer filed a federal lawsuit Friday alleging that a Hall of Fame coach sexually abused her as a minor 15 years ago and that USA Swimming and other organizations knew about the alleged abuse but failed to stop it, multiple media outlets reported.
Amanda Lee’s lawsuit lists her as “one of the girls” allegedly abused by a “known child rapist” who worked as a youth swimming coach, according to the 33-page complaint filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, CNN reports. reportThe suit adds that individuals and entities supported the defendant coach, Joseph Bernal, “with infrastructure, status and prestige for decades,” allowing him “full access to a never-ending cycle of preying on young girls.”
According to the outlet, the lawsuit alleges that Bernal sexually abused Les from about 2008 to about 2014. Bernal, founder of the Bernal Gator Swim Club for amateur swimmers, reportedly coached Les from 2006 to 2010. (Related article: Doctor who sexually abused gymnast stabbed multiple times in prison)
Bernal has coached at Fordham and Harvard universities, served as the U.S. coach in the 1976, 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games, and has coached numerous Olympic medalists and world record holders. He was inducted into the U.S. Swimming Coaches Hall of Fame in 2015. Obituary From Glick Family Funeral Home.
However, USA Swimming banned Bernal for life on February 23, 2016, over allegations of sexual misconduct. List curated by USA SwimmingAccording to the lawsuit, the player Bernal allegedly abused was Les, identified as “Player A,” CNN reported.
Bernal died on Oct. 1, 2022, at age 82, according to his obituary.
“What happened to her is sad, but it’s not uncommon,” Lee’s lawyer, John Little, told CNN. “Guys like Larry Nassar and Bernal, who produce Olympic medalists, can literally rape children as long as it produces medals and prize money. The system is designed to protect the producers. Removing Nassar and Bernal doesn’t change the problem.”
“But it was a sad open secret in the swimming community that he was having sex with the kids he coached,” Little alleged. FOX59 News Interview.
Little also told FOX59 News that her first lawsuit against Bernal was filed on behalf of young female athletes who were allegedly sexually abused in the 1970s. Lee’s lawsuit is reportedly Little’s second against Bernal.
Meanwhile, the nine-day 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Swimming Trials are taking place in Indianapolis, Indiana in preparation for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. according to USA Swimming.
