Former national ski coach Bertrand Charest has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for sexually assaulting teenage girls he trained.
A judge handed down the sentence in a courtroom north of Montreal Friday morning.
With time already served in detention, Charest has seven years and 10 months left in the sentence.
A judge called Charest a sexual predator when he found him guilty last June on charges involving nine of the 12 women who’d accused him of crimes dating back more than 20 years.
All but one of the victims and alleged victims were under the age of 18 at the time of the offences, with the youngest being 12.
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The crimes took place when Charest was their coach.
Crown prosecutor Caroline Lafleur asked that Charest be given a dissuasive 12-year prison sentence, while defence lawyer Antonio Cabral countered with a recommendation of between four and six years.
The maximum term for his crimes was 14 years.
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Charest’s victims delivered emotional impact statements last month, with one telling the court he had robbed her of her childhood and acted like a predator.
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Another cried as she recounted how she lives with “shame, guilt and disgust” because of the sex assaults.
Charest is appealing his conviction on 37 sex-related charges, with Cabral alleging a lengthy list of legal errors made by the trial judge.
READ MORE: Ex-ski coach Bertrand Charest to appeal sex-crime convictions
The 57 initial charges against Charest included sexual assault, sexual exploitation and one of sexual assault causing bodily harm.
Charest, who didn’t testify at his trial, was acquitted on 18 charges, while the court said it didn’t have jurisdiction over two other counts related to incidents that occurred abroad.
Some of the offences took place both before and during Charest’s stint with Alpine Canada’s women’s development team between 1996 and 1998.
The national ski organization said in a statement after the verdict was rendered that the ruling sent a message that abusing authority has no place in sports or in society in general.
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