Women Come Forward Years Later To Accuse Former Coach Of Sex Abuse
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — Former Los Angeles gymnasts and aspiring Olympians say they were tortured, burned, and sexually abused by their coach before they became teenagers. The team was coached in the 1970s and '80s by Doug Boger, a charming man and renowned champion from Colorado.
Now, more than 30 years later, the Flairs' gymnasts have reunited in Pasadena in hopes of having Boger tried for his alleged crimes. The women claim he was having sex with them before they were old enough to drive. Others say Boger would go into a rage and kick and hit them inflicting painful injuries.
Anne Malver, 51, was one of Boger's first gymnasts spoke exclusively to CBS2's Sharon Tay about what she says happened to her. "He began grooming me for eventual sexual contact. He molested me sexually multiple times," she said. She claims her coach was having sex with her between 11 and 14-years-old and happened at least a dozen times. "In the bedroom forcing himself inside me even though I was crying out for him to stop," she said.
The women say there were whispers about Boger's relationships with his students, which eventually reached former Mayor Richard Riordan whose daughter, Kathy, was a Flairs gymnast. Kathy says she first caught Boger during a gymnastic road trip. "Through a crack in the curtain, I saw him in bed with a teammate and they both jumped out of the bed naked."
Each victim kept what happened to them a secret until they heard Boger was coaching kids in Colorado. They created a Facebook page to spread the word about Boger and finally began to share their experiences.
Boger told CBS2 that the women have completely fabricated their stories and that they are false. "I do not abuse them. I do not have sex with them," he said.
The former gymnasts' claims will likely never lead to criminal charges because the alleged sexual acts took place decades ago and the statute of limitations appears to have run out. While these women are pressing to change those statutes, they will continue to spread the word so parents can keep their children away from Boger and others out there like him.
