Underwater: The Greed-Soaked Tale of Sexual Abuse in USA Swimming and Around the Globe

(Paperback, No Edition)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Horrifying stuff that we desperately need to know. Scott Ostler, sports columnist, San Francisco Chronicle

Backed by hundreds of interviews and thousands of pages of USA Swimming files subpoenaed by the FBI, Irvin Muchnick uncovers a generation of cover-ups involving some of the sports biggest names

The hundreds of millions who watch the thrilling spectacle of the Olympics are unaware of the extent to which their entertainment is undergirded by the systematic abuse by coaches of the underage athletes they develop. Many flag-waving fans gained some sense of the problem from the USA Gymnastics scandals, but for generations, the crimes in swimming have caused a much wider tsunami of pain and trauma around the world.

Backed by thousands of pages of FBI files and the authors independent investigations, Underwater is the first comprehensive account of this ongoing and unacceptable phenomenon. Irvin Muchnick, a well-known chronicler of the dark side of sports, pulls together shocking stories involving some of the most iconic coaches in swimming history and some of the sports most celebrated programs including Michael Phelpss. The book lays the blame not just at the feet of individual villains but also at a system that casually commodifies and sexualizes the vulnerable and non-consenting, prioritizing the pursuit of athletic scholarships, Olympic medals, glory, and riches.

Underwater arrives just as a congressional commission has called for the first fundamental changes in the U.S. youth sports system in half a century. In the authors estimation, this reform is the only real way to protect kids from the predation of the money-first stewards of professionalized sports.

Reviews

The subject matter makes for grim reading, but the abhorrent institutional wrongdoing Muchnick uncovers deserves to be widely known. This will make waves. Publishers Weekly
This is a powerful reminder of the need to speak truth to power and to keep sports practices healthy and safe. Booklist
Irvin Muchnick made my carefully selected list of personal heroes long ago. Nobody rakes the muck, nobody shines a searchlight on human cockroaches with a more relentless sense of purpose than Irvin does. Underwater is a shining example of his work. Its horrifying stuff that we desperately need to know. Scott Ostler, sports columnist, San Francisco Chronicle
It may take wide readership of Underwater to push parents to demand reforms that better protect their families. Those involved in such programs should be sure to read this book. Beyond Chron

Author Bio

Irvin Muchnick is the author of Wrestling Babylon, Chris & Nancy, Concussion Inc., and Without Helmets or Shoulder Pads: The American Way of Death in Football Conditioning. He has written articles for the New York Times, Salon, the Washington Monthly, People, Spy, Sports Illustrated, and other major outlets, as well as for Irelands Broadsheet and Village magazine and San Franciscos Beyond Chron. He lives in Berkeley, CA.