- Conrad Mainwaring, 72, of Los Angeles, who competed in the 1976 Olympics as a hurdler for Antigua and Barbuda, has pleaded guilty to sexually abusing nine underage boys in the 1970s.
- He is charged with 12 counts of indecent assault and battery on a child 14 years of age or older and four counts of assault on a child under 14 years old, crimes committed between 1975 and 1979 while working at a sports camp in Massachusetts. It originates from.
- “You stole a part of my childhood, a part of my innocence and frivolity,” testified Michael Waxman, a Portland, Maine-based attorney who was one of Mainwaring’s victims. did. “Conrad, I was a really good girl. I didn’t deserve to feel shame. I didn’t deserve to feel bad about myself. That’s what you have done and will do. Shame on you.”
A former Olympian and longtime track and field coach pleaded guilty Thursday to sexually abusing boys while working at a sports camp in western Massachusetts in the 1970s.
Conrad Mainwaring, a hurdler for Antigua and Barbuda at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, was charged in Berkshire Superior Court with 12 counts of indecent assault and battery on a child over 14 years of age and 12 counts of indecent assault on a child under 14 years of age. He was charged with four counts of assault and battery. The charges involved nine male victims.
In a pattern repeated over the years, prosecutors say Mainwaring used his Olympic status as part of his grooming scheme for boys attending Camp Greylock, telling them that sexually assaulting them would make them better athletes. He detailed one incident after another that he had led young people to believe. The abuse took place in the woods around the camp, in vans and near tennis courts.
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After the details of the case were presented, Mainwaring, who was in a wheelchair and wearing a mask, was asked by the judge if he had committed the crimes listed in court, to which he answered “yes.” After each charge was read out, he said, “Guilty.”
Mainwaring, a 72-year-old British national who lives in Los Angeles, sexually abused campers from 1975 to 1979 while working as a counselor at Camp Greylock in Becket. Authorities said they believe there are “many other victims” in multiple states and outside the United States.
Victims at the camp, some of whom were between the ages of 13 and 19, testified at Thursday’s hearing and recalled the humiliation and damage the abuse inflicted on them. They spoke directly to Mr. Mainwaring, calling him a danger to young people. They called for a lengthy prison sentence, arguing that it would keep him away from boys and young people and prohibit him from coaching.
Conrad Mainwaring is seen at his arraignment in Berkshire County Superior Court on March 16, 2021 in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. (Stephanie Zorshan/Berkshire Eagle, via AP, File)
“This is beyond demonic and the pain and suffering of so many people. That’s why he needs to be put behind bars and never be able to hurt anyone again,” said the entrepreneur and father of three. ‘s father, John Shapiro, told the court how he was abused. Camp, Massachusetts, and Syracuse University said, “If given the chance, he would do it. He has shown no remorse or forgiveness. None. Again, given the chance, Mr. Mainwaring would do it again. will do.”
Mr. Shapiro also detailed the toll the abuse had on his life.
“The trauma of that time has filled my life with darkness, sadness and hopelessness. I have suffered greatly for many years,” Shapiro said. “It’s too painful and too tortuous to put into words, but I’m here trying to do it now. Since that first fateful time in Greylock when he molested me… My life was never the same.”
Michael Waxman recounted how he met Mainwaring at a camp 40 years ago when he was 13 years old. Waxman, a lawyer from Portland, Maine, told the court at the time that he was “over the moon” that Mainwaring had chosen him and was planning to follow him. “The ends of the earth” to dream of becoming a top athlete.
“What you did to me has nothing to do with my dreams,” he said while confronting Mainwaring for the first time in decades. “It was all about satisfying perverted sexual desires.”
Waxman said the abuse left her feeling ashamed and disgusted “for the first time in my life.”
“You stole a part of my childhood, a part of my innocence and frivolity,” he said. “Conrad, I was a really good girl. I didn’t deserve to feel shame. I didn’t deserve to feel bad about myself. That’s what you have done and will do. Shame on you.”
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As the victims read their statements, Mainwaring mostly looked at the ground or twiddled his thumbs. He did not say anything directly to the victim.
Massachusetts authorities began investigating Mainwaring after a 2019 ESPN report alleging that more than 50 men had been abused by him, including at Camp Gray. This included men in rock. He was arrested in 2021 on a fugitive warrant as he left a Los Angeles County courthouse after pleading in a separate case in 2019.
“Everyone who helped bring justice to Conrad Mainwaring, including law enforcement, the district attorney, and ESPN journalists, deserves our gratitude. Especially the brave people who shared their stories, we extend our deepest gratitude.” they deserve,” said attorney Saul Wolff, who is representing the seven attorneys. The victims filed suit against Syracuse University in New York, the Syracuse School District, and Camp, Massachusetts.
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“Now that Mr. Mainwaring intends to take responsibility by entering a guilty plea, it is time for Syracuse University and Camp Greylock to accept responsibility and be held accountable,” he added.
