Judge finds: Former swimming coach Dick Caine raped and sexually abused girls

A judge found that former swimming coach Richard “Dick” Caine raped and sexually abused young female athletes in the swimming pool as well as in his home and car.

The former elite swimming coach is said to have committed dozens of sexual assaults on six young female athletes who trained with him in the 1970s and 1980s.

On Wednesday, Caine, now in his late 70s, was found to have committed 39 crimes against female members of his swim team, including rape and sexual assault.

The attacks took place at the Carss Park swimming pool in southern Sydney, as well as at Caine's house and in his car.

Several of the victims were virgins at the time of Caine's rape. One of them said she had never even been kissed by a boy.

Caine, who once coached several champion swimmers, is now in palliative care.

He was excused from directly addressing the allegations, so the case was heard at a special hearing rather than a trial.

In handing down the verdict, New South Wales District Court Judge Paul McGuire said he found the victims' statements credible, despite the fact that much time had passed since the incidents.

Victims were afraid of Caine

Several of the victims present in the courtroom breathed a sigh of relief as the verdict was announced, hugging each other and wiping tears from their eyes.

“We did it,” said one of them.

Judge McGuire concluded that the trainer had an interest in prepubescent and pubescent girls and acted on that interest, including by raping a girl who was then ten years old.

The court heard that one of the victims had serious ambitions to compete in the Olympic Games and the Commonwealth Games, but these were dashed by Caine's behaviour.

Several victims said they were afraid of Caine because of his authority and coaching style.

Several victims reported the presence of pornography and alcohol in the trainer's home and said they saw the defendant's horse, which prosecutors said lent credibility to their statements.

One of the victims described in “graphic” detail how her hands were tied and later recalled seeing a used condom next to the bed.

Prosecutors argued that the report was “so detailed and so convincing” that it must be true.

Caine's lawyers argued that the evidence related to incidents that occurred about 50 years ago and was not reliable.

However, Judge McGuire found that all of the victims'/survivors' statements were honest and credible, including that they readily made admissions about details they could no longer clearly remember.

He noted that one of them presented compelling evidence that “she would not do this to herself, her husband and her family if what she said was a lie.”

The case will be heard again in court on December 6 to determine the sentence.

AAP