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Los Angeles Times
13 hours ago
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
Former coach at renowned Iowa-based gymnastics academy arrested by FBI
IOWA CITY, Iowa — The U.S. gymnastics world was only just recovering from a devastating sexual abuse scandal when a promising young coach moved from Mississippi to Iowa to take a job in 2018 at an elite academy known for training Olympic champions. Liang 'Chow' Qiao, the owner of Chow's Gymnastics and Dance Institute in West Des Moines, thought highly enough of his new hire, Sean Gardner, to put him in charge of the club's premier junior event and to coach some of its most promising girls. But four years later, Gardner was gone from Chow's with little notice. USA Gymnastics, the organization rocked by the Larry Nassar sex-abuse crisis that led to the creation of the U.S. Center for SafeSport, had been informed by the watchdog group that Gardner was suspended from all contact with gymnasts. The reason for Gardner's removal wasn't disclosed. But court records obtained exclusively by The Associated Press show the coach was accused of sexually abusing at least three young gymnasts at Chow's and secretly recording others undressing in a gym bathroom at his prior job in Mississippi. Last week, more than three years after being suspended from coaching, the FBI arrested Gardner, 38, on a federal child pornography charge. But his disciplinary case has still not been resolved by SafeSport, which handles sex-abuse cases in Olympic sports. In cases like Gardner's, the public can be in the dark for years while SafeSport investigates and sanctions coaches. SafeSport requires that allegations be reported to police to ensure abusers don't run unchecked outside of sports, but critics say the system is a slow, murky process. 'From an outward operational view, it seems that if SafeSport is involved in any way, the situation turns glow-in-the-dark toxic,' said attorney Steve Silvey, a longtime SafeSport critic who has represented people in cases involving the center. While acknowledging there can be delays as its investigations unfold, SafeSport defended its temporary suspensions in a statement as 'a unique and valuable intervention' when there are concerns of a risk to others. Nevertheless, in 2024, Gardner was able to land a job helping care for surgical patients at an Iowa hospital — two years after the abuse allegations against him were reported to SafeSport and the police. And it was not until late May that West Des Moines police executed a search warrant at his home, eventually leading to the recovery of a trove of photos and videos on his computer and cellphone of nude young girls, court records show. Authorities in Iowa sealed the court documents after the AP asked about the investigation earlier this month, before details of the federal charge were made public Friday. Gardner, Qiao and Gardner's former employer in Mississippi did not respond to AP requests for comment. Chow's Gymnastics is best known as the academy where U.S. gymnasts Shawn Johnson and Gabby Douglas trained before becoming gold medalists at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. Qiao opened the gym in 1998 after starring on the Chinese national team and moving to the United States to coach at the University of Iowa. The gym became a draw for top youth gymnasts, with some families moving to Iowa to train there. Gardner moved to Iowa in September 2018, jumping at the opportunity to coach under Qiao. 'This is the job that I've always wanted. Chow is really someone I have looked up to since I've been coaching,' Gardner told the ABC affiliate WOI-TV in 2019. 'And you can tell when you step foot in the gym, just even from coaching the girls, the culture that he's built. It's amazing. It's beautiful.' A year later, Gardner was promoted to director of Chow's Winter Classic, an annual meet that draws more than 1,000 gymnasts to Iowa. He also coached a junior Olympics team during his four-year tenure at Chow's. Several of his students earned college gymnastics scholarships, but Gardner said he had bigger goals. 'You want to leave a thumbprint on their life, so when they go off hopefully to school, to bigger and better things, that they remember Chow's as family,' he said in a 2020 interview with WOI-TV. Gardner is accused of abusing his position at Chow's and his former job at Jump'In Gymnastics in Mississippi to prey on girls under his tutelage, according to a nine-page FBI affidavit released Friday that summarizes the allegations against him. A girl reported to SafeSport in March 2022 that Gardner used 'inappropriate spotting techniques' in which he would put his hands between her legs and touch her vagina, the affidavit said. It said she alleged Gardner would ask girls if they were sexually active and call them 'idiots, sluts, and whores.' She said this behavior began after his hiring in 2018 and continued until she left the gym in 2020 and provided the names of six other potential victims. SafeSport suspended Gardner in July 2022 — four months after the girl's report — a provisional step it can take in severe cases with 'sufficient evidentiary support' as investigations proceed. A month after that, the center received a report from another girl alleging additional 'sexual contact and physical abuse,' including that Gardner similarly fondled her during workouts, the FBI affidavit said. The girl said that he once dragged her across the carpet so hard that it burned her buttocks, the affidavit said. SafeSport shared the reports with West Des Moines police, in line with its policy requiring adults who interact with youth athletes to disclose potential criminal cases to law enforcement. While SafeSport's suspension took Gardner out of gymnastics, the criminal investigation quickly hit a roadblock. Police records show a detective told SafeSport to urge the alleged victims to file criminal complaints, but only one of their mothers contacted police in 2022. That woman said her daughter did not want to pursue criminal charges, and police suspended the investigation. Victims of abuse are often reluctant to cooperate with police, said Ken Lang, a retired detective and associate professor of criminal justice at Milligan University. 'In this case you have the prestige of this facility,' he said. 'Do they want to associate their name with that, in that way, when their aspirations were to succeed in gymnastics?' Police suspended the investigation, even as Gardner was on probation for his second-offense of driving while intoxicated. The case stayed dormant until April 2024 when another former Chow's student came forward to the West Des Moines Police Department to report abuse allegations, according to a now-sealed affidavit signed by police detective Jeff Lyon. The AP is not identifying the student in line with its policy of not naming victims of alleged sexual abuse. The now 18-year-old told police she began taking lessons from Gardner when she was 11 or 12 in 2019, initially seeing him as a 'father figure' who tried to help her get through her parents' divorce. He told her she could tell him 'anything,' the affidavit said. When she moved in 2021, she told police, he gave her a hug and said she could text and follow him on Instagram and other social media sites, where he went by the nickname 'Coach Seanie,' because gym policy barring such contact no longer applied. According to a summary of her statement provided in Lyon's affidavit, she said Gardner fondled her during exercises, repeatedly touching her vagina; rubbed her back and butt and discussed his sex life; and made her do inappropriate stretches that exposed her privates. She told police she suspected he used his cellphone to film her in that position. Reached by the AP, the teen's mother declined comment. The mother told police she was interested in a monetary settlement with Chow's because the gym 'had been made aware of the complaints and they did nothing to stop them,' according to Lyon's affidavit. The gym didn't return AP messages seeking comment. It took 16 months after the teen's 2024 report for the FBI to arrest Gardner, who made an initial court appearance in Des Moines on Friday on a charge of producing visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct, which can carry up to 30 years in prison. A public defender assigned to represent him didn't return AP messages seeking comment. It's unclear why the case took so long to investigate and also when the FBI, which had to pay $138 million to Nassar's victims for botching that investigation, got involved in the case. Among evidence seized by investigators in late May were a cellphone, laptop and a desktop computer along with handwritten notes between Gardner and his former pupils, according to the sealed court documents. They found images of girls, approximately 6 to 14 years in age, who were nude, using the toilet or changing into leotards, those documents show. Those images appear to have come from a hidden camera in a restroom. They also uncovered 50 video files and 400 photos, including some that appeared to be child pornography, according to the FBI affidavit. One video allegedly shows Gardner entering the bathroom and turning off the camera. Investigators also found images of an adult woman secretly filmed entering and exiting a bathtub, and identified her as Gardner's ex-girlfriend. That woman as well as the gym's owner, Candi Workman, told investigators the images appeared to come from Jump'In Gymnastics' facility in Purvis, Miss., which has since been closed. SafeSport has long touted that it can deliver sanctions in cases where criminal charges are not pursued as key to its mission. However, Gardner's ability to land a job in health care illustrates the limits of that power: It can ban people from sports but that sanction is not guaranteed to reach the general public. While not commenting about Gardner's case directly, it said in a statement provided to AP that a number of issues factor into why cases can take so long to close, including the 8,000 reports it receives a year with only around 30 full-time investigators. It has revamped some procedures, it said, in an attempt to become more efficient. 'While the Center is able and often does cooperate in law enforcement investigations,' it said, 'law enforcement is not required to share information, updates, or even confirm an investigation is ongoing.' USA Gymnastics President Li Li Leung called the center's task 'really tough, difficult to navigate.' 'I would like to see more consistency with their outcomes and sanctions,' Leung said. 'I would like to see more standardization on things. I would like to see more communication, more transparency from their side.' As the investigation proceeded, Gardner said on his Facebook page he had landed a new job in May 2024 as a surgical technologist at MercyOne West Des Moines Medical Center. It's a role that calls for positioning patients on the operating room table, and assisting with procedures and post-surgery care. Asked about Gardner's employment, hospital spokesman Todd Mizener told the AP: 'The only information I can provide is that he is no longer' at the hospital. Meanwhile, the case lingers, leaving lives in limbo more than three years after the SafeSport Center and police first learned of it. 'SafeSport is now part of a larger problem rather than a solution, if it was ever a solution,' said attorney Silvey. 'The most fundamental professional task such as coordination with local or federal law enforcement gets botched on a daily basis, hundreds of times a year now.' Foley and Pells write for the Associated Press. AP reporter Will Graves contributed.
Euronews
4 days ago
- Business
- Euronews
Is China finally turning the corner on its economic slump?
Three years after a property crisis of historic proportions, China is beginning to show tentative signs of recovery. But for the world's second-largest economy—long hailed as a global growth engine—the path forward remains fraught with uncertainty, as the scars of the real estate downturn continue to weigh heavily on sentiment, investment and consumption. Property sector remains the core weakness The most entrenched source of China's economic weakness remains its housing sector. New home prices across 70 major cities fell by 3.2% year-on-year in June 2025, marking a continuation of the downturn that began in 2022. Although the rate of decline eased slightly from the 3.5% drop recorded in May, it still underscores the sector's persistent fragility. 'It is hard to conclude that the sector is out of the woods,' said Helen Qiao, Chief Economist for China at Bank of America, in a recent report. 'We expect an 8–10% decline in new home sales and a 15–20% contraction in residential new starts this year—similar to the pace seen in 2023–24. The downcycle remains prolonged.' She added, 'If we look at the length and depth of the current cycle, the downcycle is certainly the most severe since the commercialisation of China's property market in the late-1990s.' The Chinese housing downturn has triggered a deflationary impulse across the broader economy, with consumer prices declining on a year-over-year basis for much of the past three years. China's real GDP has stabilised around 5% annually—far below the near-7% average posted in the five years preceding the pandemic. The gap with respect to the US economy has grown significantly since the pandemic. China's nominal GDP edged up from $18.2 trillion in 2021 to $18.7 trillion by the end of 2024. In the same period, the US economy surged from $23.7 trillion to $29.2 trillion. Stock market performance reflects this divergence. As of mid-August 2025, the Shanghai Composite is trading at the same level as in late 2021—having endured a near 30% drop in the interim. By contrast, the S&P 500 has gained 40% over the same period, fuelled by strong consumer demand and dominance in AI and tech innovation. The market capitalisation of China's seven largest companies stands at $2.4 trillion—far behind the $19.5 trillion valuation of the top seven US firms. Trade risks and geopolitical tensions linger While a full trade war has been temporarily averted following a double 90-day suspension of additional US tariffs, the environment remains tense. 'We see upside risks to the existing 10% of reciprocal tariff rate to China,' said Qiao. 'Keep in mind that China currently faces around 40% of effective tariffs.' She broke down the composition: '11% pre-existing rate from Trump's first term, 20% fentanyl tariffs, and 10% reciprocal tariffs.' A partial rollback of fentanyl-related tariffs remains possible, which could reduce the effective rate to 30–35%, a 5–10 percentage point reduction from current levels. However, uncertainty remains elevated. 'Any perception of one side failing to fully uphold its promise could trigger a renewed escalation in tensions,' Qiao warned. She also pointed to potential penalties from China's continued crude oil imports from Russia. On Wednesday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview that during the most recent G7 summit in Canada, leaders discussed the possibility of imposing 200% tariffs on China over its continued purchases of Russian crude oil—though the proposal did not receive support from European counterparts. Beijing is throwing cash to consumers: Will it work? In response to faltering domestic demand, Chinese policymakers launched two interest subsidy programmes in August 2025 aimed at stimulating household consumption and supporting service-sector businesses. These measures include a 1 percentage point fiscal subsidy for consumer loans taken between September 2025 and August 2026, and targeted subsidies for businesses in eight service industries. Bank of America's Qiao described the initiative as significant in scope: 'It is the first time the central government has offered interest subsidies for personal consumption loans.' However, she expressed reservations about its potential impact: 'The subsidy of 1% through borrowing costs will unlikely make a meaningful difference in the purchase decisions made by those who need to borrow to spend.' A long road to recovery While Beijing's efforts to stabilise the economy are becoming more targeted, the challenges are structural as much as cyclical. Sentiment remains fragile, and analysts are reluctant to declare a turning point. 'We believe this latest credit policy could help support the recovery of household credit demand from the current low levels,' said Qiao. 'That said, the size of the impact is still questionable.' For now, China's economic recovery remains tentative—caught between weak property fundamentals, cautious consumers, and an uncertain geopolitical environment.
Malay Mail
05-08-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
From street food to syllabus: China launches first barbecue research institute to train 1,000 grill masters
BEIJING, Aug 5 — A university in central China has partnered with a local industry body to launch the country's first Barbecue Research Institute, aiming to elevate the street food into a formal profession. According to South China Morning Post, Yueyang Open University and the Yueyang Barbecue Association have signed a strategic cooperation agreement to establish the new institute, with plans to train 1,000 barbecue artisans within three years. Qiao, a member of staff with the Yueyang Barbecue Association, said, 'As it is a new initiative, recruiting students this year would be premature, so we plan to begin by recruiting from the public.' The three-year programme includes two and a half years of theoretical coursework and a six-month internship, offering classes in both craftsmanship and business management. It will target middle school graduates, out-of-school youth and current practitioners seeking to obtain formal qualifications. Annual intake is expected to range between 50 and 100 students, with recruitment scheduled to begin next year. Yueyang Barbecue Industry Association president Meng Yinshuai said, 'The barbecue industry has long been undervalued, so it is natural for differing opinions to arise now that it is gaining recognition. 'We aim to expand its influence through sustained promotion and public outreach.' Barbecue has long held cultural significance in China and remains a popular street food. According to Grand View Research, China's barbecue market generated US$421.9 million (RM1.7 billion) in 2024 and is projected to reach US$606.5 million by 2030. Yueyang is home to more than 2,000 barbecue outlets contributing over 2 billion yuan (RM1.1 billion) annually and supporting around 50,000 jobs.
Malaysian Reserve
18-07-2025
- Science
- Malaysian Reserve
Chen Institute and AAAS Announce Winner of 2024 AI Prize for AI Accelerated Research
Global research award celebrates transformative AI solutions in the fields of neuroscience, biochemistry, and climatology. REDWOOD CITY, Calif., July 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Institute and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) today announced the winners of the inaugural Chen Institute and Science Prize for AI Accelerated Research, a major annual award celebrating innovative uses of AI to accelerate scientific discovery. The three winners share cash prizes totaling $50,000, and will see their prizewinning research essays published by Science Magazine. Dr. Zhuoran Qiao, a Founding Scientist of San Francisco-based startup Chai Discovery, received the Grand Prize for his work using AI in the field of molecular biology. Also honored as Finalists were Dr. Aditya Nair, a Postdoctoral Fellow and NIH NeuroAI Early Career Scholar at Caltech and Stanford University, whose work merges AI and neuroscience; and Dr. Alizée Roobaert, a researcher at Vlaams Instituut voor de Zee (Flanders Marine Institute) in Ostend, Belgium, who developed an innovative AI solution to monitor oceanic climate dynamics. de Zee (Flanders Marine Institute) in Ostend, Belgium, who developed an innovative AI solution to monitor oceanic climate dynamics. 'We were excited to receive such an impressive range of applications from around the world, spanning many different scientific disciplines,' said Chrissy Luo, Chen Institute cofounder. 'At a time when AI is radically accelerating global scientific discovery, we're delighted to work with AAAS and showcase three incredible young researchers who are using these powerful new technologies to expand the frontiers of human knowledge.' 'Science, as always, was excited to see the variety of high-quality, imaginative entries for the 2024 AI Prize,' said Yury V. Suleymanov, senior editor at Science. 'This trio of early-career scientists demonstrated that they are at the cutting edge of their craft with innovative AI solutions to address substantial challenges and opportunities faced by scientists in a number of areas.' Each applicant submitted a 1000-word essay describing their work, which were judged by an independent committee of Science editors. The winning entries were: Grand Prize: Putting proteins under a computational microscopeBuilding on Nobel-winning research that uses generative AI technologies to predict how proteins fold, Dr. Qiao uses sophisticated machine learning techniques to create dynamic models, showing how folded proteins change over time—and, importantly, how they interact with smaller molecules. The result: a 'computational microscope' that can predict with remarkable speed and accuracy how proteins will behave, enabling powerful new tools for drug discovery. 'We're unlocking a huge opportunity to map out these molecular interactions at an unprecedented scale—and to leverage that to rapidly develop new drugs and treatments,' Dr. Qiao says. Finalist: Listening in on the brain's hidden chorusBreakthroughs in neural imaging now allow researchers to monitor the activity of individual neurons—but Dr. Nair is using AI to reveal the hidden choruses and harmonies that emerge as neurons interact with one another. His work shows that these interactions form durable, self-perpetuating patterns that can encode and modulate long-lasting mental or emotional states—such as arousal, anger and anger—independently of any individual neuron's activity. His models also revealed that these long-lasting network effects are mediated by slow-acting neuropeptides, making them more robust over time. Finalist: Understanding how coastal waters absorb CO2The world's oceans absorb about one-quarter of all human-made carbon dioxide emissions, but little is known about the role of coastal oceans in powering the global oceanic carbon sink. Dr. Roobaert used neural networks to fuse global satellite data and 18 million datapoints from coastal CO2 measurements, creating the first high-resolution model of CO2 absorption in coastal waters. By joining the dots between patchy datasets, her methodology offers a truly global overview of both the health and the climatological role of the world's oceans. Dr. Qiao, the Grand Prize winner, receives a cash award of $30,000 and his essay appears in today's issue of Science (in print and online). Dr. Nair and Dr. Roobaert, the two Finalists, each receive a cash award of $10,000, and will have their essays published in Science online. All three also receive a five-year subscription to Science online and become honorary Chen Scholars. Presenting Their Work Alongside Powerhouse Researchers Dr. Qiao, Dr. Nair, and Dr. Roobaert will present their research at the first annual Chen Institute Symposium for AI Accelerated Science, held in San Francisco on October 27-28, 2025. They will be joined by Nobel Laureates Dr. Jennifer Doudna and Dr. David Baker, plus an impressive line-up of other leading global academics, industry leaders, and researchers. The Symposium is open to the public, and registration is required. For more information, please visit You can join the AIAS Talent Community and become an AIAS Fellow by emailing AITalents@ Sign up to be reminded when the Prize portal opens on the Science website. About the Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Institute The Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Institute, established in 2016 by philanthropists Tianqiao Chen and Chrissy Luo, seeks to improve the human experience by understanding how our brains perceive, learn, and interact with the world. Based in the Bay Area, the Chen Institute advances scientific research, particularly in neuroscience, aging, and artificial intelligence by working with top academic and research institutions globally. It also supports initiatives in AI development, emphasizing its potential to enhance human well-being. About AAASThe American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is one of the world's largest general scientific societies and publisher of the journal Science, as well as Science Translational Medicine; Science Signaling; a digital, open-access journal, Science Advances; Science Immunology; and Science Robotics. AAAS was founded in 1848 and includes more than 250 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million individuals. The nonprofit AAAS is open to all and fulfills its mission to 'advance science and serve society' through initiatives in science policy, international programs, science education, public engagement, and more. For additional information about AAAS, visit
Express Tribune
25-04-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
World's tallest abandoned skyscraper set to resume construction after 10 years
Listen to article Construction on the world's tallest unoccupied skyscraper, the Goldin Finance 117 tower in Tianjin, could restart as early as next week, nearly 10 years after the project was abandoned, Chinese state media reported. The 597-metre (1,959-foot) Goldin Finance 117-storey skyscraper has remained unfinished since 2015 following the collapse of Chinese stock market. The project's return comes amid broader efforts to revive unfinished developments across China, where dozens of towering but abandoned buildings symbolise the nation's troubled real estate market. Originally intended to house office space and a luxury hotel, the building features 'mega columns' for structural safety and a distinctive diamond-topped atrium that was designed to include a swimming pool and observation deck. Plans for the tower's usage remain unclear, but state media report that a new construction permit has been issued with a contract value of nearly 569 million yuan ($78 million). The permit lists state-owned BGI Engineering Consultants as a contractor, while references to the original developer appear to have been dropped. In 2020, China banned new buildings over 500 metres, in an attempt to rein in risky, debt-fuelled projects and speculative development. If completed, the Tianjin tower would defy that restriction due to its early construction date. Neither P&T Group, the tower's original architects, nor BGI responded to requests for comment. On Monday, local state media reported that China's Greenland Group will resume construction on the long-delayed Chengdu Greenland Tower, a 468-metre (1,535-foot) skyscraper in the southwestern city of Chengdu. The project had been suspended since 2023 due to financial troubles faced by the state-owned developer. The simultaneous revival of two major high-rise projects suggests a coordinated effort, said Qiao Shitong, a law professor at Duke University and author of two books on China's property sector. 'The central government has made it clear that stabilising the real estate market is a priority,' Qiao said via video call, noting that local authorities are being pushed to support the sector's recovery. 'This is about more than the buildings — it's a message to the market.' Although financing details for the Tianjin skyscraper remain undisclosed, law professor Qiao Shitong believes state-led investment and debt restructuring are likely behind the project's revival. 'Supertall towers may not be the most efficient or profitable developments, but they serve as signals,' said Qiao. 'Bringing this project to completion is a move by the government to boost public confidence.' Urban image is also a driving force, said Fei Chen, an architecture and urban design expert at the University of Liverpool. 'An unfinished skyscraper is a visual blight — cities don't want these half-built eyesores,' she said. However, Chen cautioned that the renewed construction efforts in Tianjin and Chengdu do not mark a return to the era of so-called vanity projects. 'Despite some local benefits, these towers demand heavy investment and are neither financially nor environmentally sustainable,' she added. 'What we're seeing is not a national trend shift, but rather targeted efforts by local governments to improve their cities.' Despite economic headwinds and tighter regulations, China remains the global leader in skyscraper construction. Of the 133 skyscrapers over 200 metres completed worldwide in 2023, 91 were built in China, according to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. Architect Fei Chen said that while skyscrapers are costly, they are often deployed as 'investment magnets' to stimulate surrounding development. Goldin Finance 117 was originally part of a broader masterplan that included villas, commercial spaces, offices, a convention centre, an entertainment hub, and even a polo club. The new construction permit does not detail the future of these associated projects, though it reportedly mentions plans for multiple 'commercial corridors.' Despite the ongoing development, the economic feasibility of the Tianjin tower remains uncertain amid sluggish property sales and weak office occupancy rates across China, said Qiao. 'It's a massive investment,' he remarked, adding, 'I honestly don't know who will buy or lease the commercial space.' During the tower's decade-long delay, Tianjin saw the completion of another supertall structure — the Tianjin CTF Finance Centre, standing at 530 metres (1,739 feet), making it the world's eighth tallest building. Goldin Finance 117, meanwhile, has been overtaken in height by the Shanghai Tower and the Ping An Finance Centre in Shenzhen. As a result, the Tianjin tower would now rank as China's third tallest and the world's sixth tallest once finished.
