Melanie is a former national team gymnast and survivor of child abuse - experiencing psychological, physical and sexual abuse at the hands of her coaches during her fifteen year career in gymnastics.

At the height of the #metoo movement in 2017, a former Bluewater Gymnastics Club teammate came forward to the police about what she had witnessed during Melanie’s career. Their coach was arrested a few months later, which resulted in a criminal trial. He was eventually acquitted of the charges against him however, immediately following the verdict hearing, it was announced that multiple gymnasts had brought forward abuse allegations against him and his wife; forcing Gymnastics Canada to initiate a disciplinary hearing. It was a lengthy and re-traumatizing experience, although it eventually resulted in a lifetime ban for the male coach, and a five year suspension for the female coach.

Melanie is honoured to be a part of this well-intentioned and resilient group, committed to creating change in Canadian sport. She wholeheartedly believes that excellence in sport can be achieved without the use of fear and intimidation, and that the sport - at any level - should be focused on building athlete confidence and well-being.