Mac Trucc reacts to the Shawn Rhoden sexual assault accusations and ban from competing.
Last year Shawn Rhoden was accused of sexual assault. This came a few months after he had won his first ever Mr. Olympia. He is still in court defending himself to this day, but in the time since the accusations he has also had his pro card revoked and banned from competing in any IFBB event. In our latest GI Exclusive interview, Mac Trucc shares his thoughts on how the bodybuilding league and industry handled the Shawn Rhoden rape allegations.
Mac Trucc doesn’t hold anything back when discussing the sexual assault allegations held against Shawn Rhoden. He strongly believes that a man should be innocent until proven guilty. Obviously, this is the case legally – as Shawn Rhoden has been able to continue living his life while he defends himself in court. But in the court of public opinion, things have played out very differently. Very quickly after Rhoden was accused of sexual assault, AMI banned him from being able to compete in the Olympia 2019. Shortly after that, Rhoden had his IFBB pro card revoked – preventing him from competing at all.
Mac Trucc finds this to be an unfair reaction. From the minute the accusation was made public, Trucc believes that Shawn Rhoden was found guilty by the public… and there’s no way for him to earn that trust back. Trucc even explains how if the woman involved theoretically came out and said she was lying, there would always be people who think that Shawn paid her off. No matter what happens in this case, the accusation will change the way people see him forever.
Mac Trucc goes into further detail by stating that just because Shawn Rhoden isn’t in jail – it doesn’t mean he isn’t being punished (for something he might not have even done). By removing his ability to compete, Rhoden has also lost his ability to make money. The negative reputation surrounding him will make it hard for him to live his life with security. He’s already taking a hit whether he’s guilty or not.
With such a serious crime, it’s hard not to expect the public to have a strong and immediate reaction. This has been the case across the world with various sexual assault cases as the Me Too movement gained steam over the last few years. Mac Trucc simply wishes that people take a moment to think jumping to conclusions.
You can watch Mac Trucc’s full response on the subject in our latest GI Exclusive interview clip above!
