FRIDAY, JULY 31 , 2020. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ SU D3
“Blackmun’s response to Bridie
Farrell, after she shared her story,
was t o chuckle, l ook d own, and say,
‘Oh G abes,’ ” the c omplaint states.
Blackmun was recovering from
surgery for prostate cancer when
he resigned in February 2018, in
the wake of the gymnastics sexual
abuse scandal. That same year, a
USOPC spokesman told The Post,
“Scott has a very different recollec-
tion of his conversation with Ms.
Farrell, but she deserves our sup-
port, not our d isagreement.”
For Farrell, the toll from the
decades-old abuse is still f elt today.
The complaint states that she de-
veloped eating disorders and has
struggled with “depression, fear,
and anxiety including periodic
suicidal thoughts.”
“It’s like the ultimate human
test. It’s an extreme amount of
pain and betrayal and deceit, and
you have to learn how to grapple
and cope with that,” she told The
Post, “to be able t o continue living.
What he did will be with me forev-
er.”
As a buse a llegations have r oiled
many corners of the Olympic
world and national governing
bodies i n the U nited States, Farrell
has emerged as an outspoken ad-
vocate, including through the non-
profit she founded called America
Loves Kids. She testified before a
Senate Commerce subcommittee
in April 2018, telling Capitol Hill
lawmakers: “The idea that we’ve
just started speaking up isn’t true.
We’ve been yelling for years, b ut no
one’s b een listening.”
Farrell also fought for legisla-
tion in New York and Arizona that
allowed victims to sue years after
statutes of limitations had ex-
pired. A similar law in California
allowed six former athletes to sue
USA Swimming last month in
three separate civil lawsuits.
Despite h er experiences, Farrell
says she’s not completely disillu-
sioned with Olympic sports. She
still l oves s peedskating and would
encourage kids to lace up a pair of
skates. That’s why, she says, she
feels a sense of responsibility to
challenge a system that she feels
failed her.
“A nd because I believe that in
my b ones, that’s why I’m willing to
fight to fix the system and not just
throw it all away,” she said. “In all
of those moments when adults
could have done something — in
199 0 in Michigan or in 1997 with
me or all through the 2000 s with
Larry Nassar — they didn’t. They
took the coward’s way out and did
nothing.”
[email protected]FROM NEWS SERVICESThe Buffalo Bills became the
NFL’s f irst team to send its rookies
home and hold training camp re-
motely after two more players
tested positive for the novel coro-
navirus.
Defensive backs Siran Neal and
Dane Jackson both t ested positive
Thursday, upping the team’s total
to five since rookies reported
July 2 1. Neal is a second-year play-
er, and Jackson is a rookie sev-
enth-round draft pick.
The Bills said the decision to
send p layers h ome was made as “a
disciplined, proactive and preven-
tative approach” in a bid to elimi-
nate additional cases.
The Bills did not provide an
estimate for how long rookies
would keep working r emotely.
l RAVENS: A day after quar-
terback Lamar Jackson expressed
interest in adding embattled free
agent wide receiver Antonio
Brown, John Harbaugh said the
decision was largely out of the
coach’s h ands.
The NFL is still investigating
accusations of rape and sexual
assault against Brown, 32, made
in a lawsuit last year by his former
trainer. If Brown signs with a
team, the league could place him
on the commissioner’s exempt
list, which would allow Brown to
be present at t he t eam’s f acility f or
meetings, workouts and medical
treatment but would bar h im from
practicing or playing in games.
“Decisions will be made based
on whatever they’re made, and I
don’t think he’s really available to
even sign right now, so it’s not
really a conversation that you
have until he’s available to sign,”
Harbaugh said i n a conference call
with reporters. “Maybe I’m wrong
about that. That’s something that
I’ll have to ask [General Manager]
Eric [DeCosta] about, where that
stands with the league and the
player. But that’s where we stand
on it, at least from my perspec-
tive.”
— Baltimore Sun
l DOLPHINS: Rookie running
back Malcolm Perry is among sev-
eral Miami players who donated
convalescent plasma after recov-
ering from the coronavirus. The
plasma helps patients still fight-
ing the virus.“Being able to give back to peo-
ple who weren’t f ortunate enough
to react the same way you did to
the virus and give back to the
community was important,” the
former Navy star said in a state-
ment r eleased by the team.
l TITANS: GM Jon Robinson
said that he h as been in t ouch with
Vic Beasley and that the lineback-
er knows his absence from train-
ing camp is unexcused.
“He told me he will be reporting
to camp in the near future,” Robin-
son said in a statement. “Our cur-
rent focus is on the players that
are here now, getting everyone
acclimated to the [coronavirus]
protocols, our building, and our
football program. We w ill have t he
same acclimation process with
Vic when he reports.”
Beasley is subject to a $50,00 0
fine each day he’s absent from
training camp.
The Titans signed Beasley to a
one-year deal for $9.5 million in
March.
l COWBOYS: Season tickets
will not be available for Dallas
games this season.
The Cowboys announced that
because of NFL policies and gov-
ernment and Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention guide-
lines o n the p andemic, capacity at
AT&T S tadium will b e limited.
l JETS: New York placed quar-
terback Joe Flacco, linebacker Av-
ery Williamson and tight end
Ryan Griffin on the physically un-
able to perform list.
l PANTHERS: Carolina decid-
ed to keep Joey Slye as its kicker
and release veteran Graham
Gano, who missed all of last sea-
son with a knee injury.
l MISC.: The players associa-
tion reached an agreement with
2K Sports that will allow t he video
game developer to use the names,
images and likenesses of more
than 2 ,000 players.
The deal also includes
OneTeam Partners, a marketing
and licensing firm that represents
the NFL and MLB player unions.
The NFL and 2K announced a
multiyear games partnership in
March. The contract with 2K,
which last p roduced an NFL game
in 2004, covers NFL-themed and
non-simulation video games. The
first titles are expected to be re-
leased e arly next year.NFL NOTESBills send rookies home
after more positive tests
BY SAM FORTIERWhen Coach Ron Rivera dis-
cussed why he chose the Washing-
ton Football Team, he emphasized
how many young players had
stepped into large roles and
showed promise — such as Cole
Holcomb. The rookie linebacker
emerged last season as one of the
defense’s most prominent contrib-
utors, starting 15 games while
racking up 105 tackles, three
forced fumbles and a sack.
Now, with a new coaching staff
and scheme, Holcomb is ready to
build. During a 12^1 / 2 -hour road trip
from his parents’ house in New
Smyrna Beach, Fla., to Northern
Virginia in late June, he spoke to
The Washington Post about which
linebacker spot he might play,
what he wants to improve upon,
why the new coaching staff has
him fired up and more.
(This interview has been edited
and condensed for clarity.)
Q: What are your road-trip essen-
tials?
A: I g ot my h alf-gallon Yeti jug f ull
of water; a lways got to stay h y-
drated. Boatloads of snacks. The
dog [Benji, an American bulldog
and pit mix,] is loaded up with the
water bowl, and he’s g ot bones
back there, so he can munch on
some stuff. I ’ll toss a tennis b all
back there every two hours ’cause
he’ll chew through a tennis ball in
like five minutes.
Q: Considering everything, how
was the offseason?
A: We did pretty fricking good
with what we’ve got. We g ot a
boatload accomplished in those
Zooms. I was so happy to talk ball
at t hat point. [I was like]: “Let’s
get on it. Let’s have quizzes.”
Q: What do you think of the de-
fense’s t ransition from a 3-4 to a
4-3?
A: Last year was my f irst time ever
playing in a 3-4, so it was a great
experience for me. But... [the
4-3] is what I’ve played in since I
was 7 years old, so I’m very com-
fortable in this defense. When
Dad coached, that was what we
Pandemic
can’t stop
drive of
Holcomb
BY RICK MAESEAt the time, Bridie Farrell said
nothing.
She was a teenager then, with
dreams of competing at the Win-
ter Olympics, when one of short-
track speedskating’s biggest stars
— a man more than twice her age
— began sexually abusing her, she
says. The first time was in a car,
Farrell says, and for more than
seven months, the abuse contin-
ued in hotel r ooms, bedrooms and
an Olympic training center.
For years, Farrell kept quiet.
When she finally told her story in
20 13, s he was upset t hat her s port’s
stakeholders didn’t take action.
She was also shocked to learn, she
says, that many had knowledge of
previous sexual a buse c omplaints.
In the years since, Farrell has
worked to fix a broken s ystem that
she says allows sexual offenders to
prey on underage a thletes. And o n
Thursday morning, Farrell, now
38, filed a lawsuit in New York
State Supreme Court against the
U. S. Olympic and Paralympic
Committee, US Speedskating and
her alleged abuser, four-time
Olympian Andy Gabel.
Farrell was able to file the case
more than two decades later
thanks to a 2019 state law for
which Farrell had advocated. The
law created a one-year “look-back”
window during which victims of
past sexual abuse can f ile civil suits
even if the statute of limitations
has expired.
“I mean, when it was happen-
ing, I was 15, and the farther away
from 15 that I get, the more per-
spective I have,” she said in an
interview with The Washington
Post. “I mean, I couldn’t drive. I’d
have to ask p ermission to go t o the
movies. I had a neighborhood
lawn-mowing business. I was a
kid. So the notion of coming for-
ward against the very people and
organizations that held the keys to
my dream, I mean, it just doesn’t
make sense why anyone would do
that. And to me, it seems that the
same system i s still in place.”
The 33-page complaint alleges
that Farrell was subject to “serial
grooming and sexual abuse” that
began in 199 7, when she was a
15-year-old Olympic hopeful and
Gabel was 33. The complaint calls
the short-track speedskating star
“a wolf in sheep’s clothing around
under-aged female speedskaters.”
It details instances of kissing,
groping, digital penetration and
emotional abuse.
Gabel could not be reached to
comment Thursday; his attorney
did not respond to a request for
comment. But s hortly after Farrell
first went public with her accusa-
tions in 20 13, he apologized, say-
ing in a statement to the Chicago
Tr ibune that he “displayed poor
judgment in a b rief, inappropriate
relationship with a female team-
mate. It did not include sex, how-
ever I know what happened was
wrong, and I make no excuses for
my b ehavior.”
Farrell’s suit also focuses on the
USOPC and US Speedskating offi-
cials who she says enabled Gabel
for years. The complaint mentions
five o ther underage v ictims, claim-
ing that Olympic and speedskat-
ing officials “chose to turn a blind
eye toward Defendant Gabel’s c on-
duct and consistently rewarded,
promoted, and protected Gabel,
placing their desire for Olympic
success before their obligation to
protect [Farrell] and other young
competitive athletes.”
“In fact, prior to his abuse of
Bridie Farrell, [US Speedskating]
installed Gabel as one of several
USS athlete representatives, to
whom complaints were to be re-
ported about sexual molestation
and abuse,” the complaint states,
“the very type of predatory behav-
ior in which Gabel himself was
engaged.”
USOPC and US Speedskating
officials did not immediately re-
turn requests for comment.
The lawsuit accuses Gabel and
the Olympic organizations of neg-
ligence, assault and battery, and itAn Olympic dream
derailed by abuse,
a quest for justice
Farrell is suing a speedskating Hall of Famer
u nder a new law she fought to passran. Dad’s s toked. It’s f unny be-
cause my dad was a Raiders fan, so
he loves [new defensive coordina-
tor Jack] Del Rio. When we hired
him, he was like, “I already know
everything about him.”Q: What’s different about this new
defensive coaching staff?
A: The attention to detail.... I
liked the attention t o detail these
coaches had this year in teaching
the techniques because t here were
times l ast year I didn’t u nderstand
fully w hat techniques [ to use].
Now I think they’re very thor-
ough. Very, v ery thorough.
Also, D el Rio has made it very
clear: “If you want t o make a play,
go make a play. I ’m n ot going to
ever tell you not to.”... I like the
ability to be able to trust your in-
stincts... but also that attention
to detail is going to have us all be
on the same page. Very e xcited
about t he defense.Q: What are reasonable expecta-
tions for the unit?
A: We can have a top-tier defense.
Look at o ur D-line. We’ve got
fricking Jon Allen, Matt [ Ioannid-
is], Daron [Payne], Tim [Settle],
[Montez] Sweat, [Ryan] Kerrigan,
Chase Young. I love our D-line.Q: This year, you could play any of
the three l inebacker spots: Mike,
Will or Sam. What do you expect
for your role this season?
A: Right now, everybody’s learn-
ing every position. Nobody k nows
what they’re playing.... My t hing
is, playing linebacker, you’ve gotto be able to play on all three, so I
will make sure I know all three po-
sitions. Plug and play, man.Q: How did you f eel i n coverage
last year?
A: I f eel like I can cover. I know
the stats say I’m not t hat great, but
I feel like for me, it’s j ust trusting
my s peed. I feel like I can cover a
lot of tight ends or running backs... [but] there were t imes w here I
got a little out of control or maybe
lunged at a g uy that would g et me
beat. So a lot of this offseason i s
just: “Hey man, listen. You’re fast.
Tr ust it.”
Q: When you watched film from
last year, what did you see?
A: I’m k ind of a perfectionist, so
where people would be like,
“Okay, t his dude, he had a bunch
of tackles, a couple f orced fum-
bles, [ tackles for loss], blah blah
blah.” When I saw the film, I saw
opportunities, and I thought:
“Dang, I wish I could get that
back. I want that back.”
I’ve gone back a nd watched
[last] season a couple times....
People will b e like, “Oh, you had a
great rookie year,” a nd I’m like,
“No, I want to do better!” I ’m
champing at t he bit to get back.Q: Is there anything we didn’t t alk
about t hat’s important from this
offseason?
A: Funny, q uick story. S o I was
down training in South Florida,
and I’d come back h ome for the
weekend, and then t hey shut ev-
erything down. And dude, I wentinto a full panic. I was like, “I’m
not going t o be able to work o ut
for how long?” So I called my h ead
strength coach [Chad Engel -
hardt], and I’m like: “Chad, I need
the Sorinex [exercise equipment]
rep’s n umber right n ow. Like,
right n ow.”... Had him ship me
an entire fricking home gym.
Looking back on it, it’s s ome-
thing he never would’ve pulled the
trigger on himself, but [ my d ad’s]
so happy that I did it. He u ses it.
Mom uses it. My n iece comes over,
she plays over in there.... My g irl-
friend, she’s a p ersonal trainer, and
like, we’re kind of fitness junkies,
so to s ee my f amily kind of getting
back into that, it made me feel
good inside.Q: The family’s g ot no excuse now.
A: I w as like, “Dad, it’s o n.” I used
to always say with my b uddies [in
the group chat]... “Is it grind sea-
son, or we got cheat meals going
on?” So he’s a lways sending his
meals t o my f amily group chat. It’s
funny because my g irlfriend’s l ike
his personal health c oach, and he’s
like: “What can I order? I’m going
to order this.” And she’s l ike,
“Okay, o rder that, no butter, no
bread, don’t e ven think about e at-
ing a french fry.”Q: Well, t he logical last question
has to be: Is i t grind season?
A: [Before this drive], I was calling
everybody up in Virginia like: “Yo,
what’s the deal? Where can we get
some workouts in? Who’s u p
here?”... It i s grind s eason, man.
[email protected]JOHN MCDONNELL/THE WASHINGTON POST
After a standout rookie year, linebacker Cole Holcomb is ready to get going for the 2020 season.claims officials received com-
plaints about Gabel’s behavior as
early as 1989. It p oints t o a lengthy
investigative report from North-
ern Michigan University, home of
the U.S. Olympic Education Cen-
ter, a training ground for many
Olympic hopefuls. The 1990 re-
port, which was reviewed by The
Post, did not recommend criminal
charges against Gabel but did de-
tail allegations and rumors involv-
ing Gabel and two underage ath-
letes.
“A t the time I lived in the dorms,
I felt it was common knowledge
that Mr. Gabel was h aving s ex w ith
minors,” one witness told investi-
gators. “On o ne o ccasion someone
put a note on his d oor w hich read:
‘15 will get you 20.’ ” Said another:“I believe I’ve become somewhat
calloused about the whole situa-
tion. I’ve mentioned to Andy that i t
is not normal to be with such
young girls, and so have his f riends
at home, but he took no action to
change.”
Farrell first shared her story
with a Milwaukee radio station in
20 13, and Gabel promptly re-
signed from his positions with the
International Skating Union and
US S peedskating.
Soon after, Nikki Meyer, a two-
time Olympian, publicly accused
Gabel of raping her when she was
15 years old, calling him a “child
molester,” a “rapist,” and a “pedo-
phile.” Gabel denied the accusa-
tions at the time, saying, “I never
forced myself on any individual,and any allegations of that nature
are absolutely false. Any relation-
ship I had w as c onsensual.”
US S peedskating a nnounced an
investigation into Gabel that year,
but it has never disclosed any find-
ings or issued any sort of punish-
ment. In 2015, Gabel forfeited his
US S peedskating membership. He
is still a member of the organiza-
tion’s Hall o f Fame.
The lawsuit alleges that US
Speedskating and the USOPC
failed to take any action against
Gabel. According to the com-
plaint, Farrell t raveled to Colorado
Springs i n the summer of 20 13 a nd
met with Scott Blackmun, the
USOPC’s chief executive, asking
that Gabel be barred from the
sport.RICK BOWMER/ASSOCIATED PRESS
B ridie Farrell, shown in 2013, is suing four-time Olympian Andy Gabel in New York state.